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The investigation for this case
was conducted in cooperation with the Food And Drug Administration. |
U.S. Department of Justice
United States Attorney's Office
Central District of California (Los Angeles)
NEWS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
ON January 9, 2004
CONTACT: Assistant United States Attorney John Owens
(213) 894-3315
A federal grand jury in Los Angeles today indicted a Glendale man on charges of trafficking in counterfeit Viagra tablets that were manufactured in the People's Republic of China.
Khoa Twan Do, also known as Chris Do, 31, was named in a three-count indictment returned this afternoon by the grand jury.
The indictment alleges that Do conspired with a manufacturer in Beijing to import at least 40,000 counterfeit Viagra tablets into the United States. Do arranged to have the bogus Viagra tablets shipped to his business, Health Plus in Glendale, from which he would resell the fake goods.
The indictment alleges that Do told his Beijing supplier that the counterfeit tablets needed to "look like the real thing" because "I can find many customers who want the real thing."
"This is another example of the hazards presented by importation of counterfeit foreign drugs into North America," said FDA Commissioner Mark B. McClellan, M.D., Ph.D. "It's a form of the medical black market that endangers the public health and cannot and will not be tolerated."
The indictment alleges one count of conspiracy, one count of trafficking in counterfeit goods and one count of selling a counterfeit drug. The three counts in the indictment carry a maximum possible penalty of 18 years in federal prison and a fine of more than $2 million.
An indictment contains allegations that a defendant has committed a crime. Every defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
Do will be summoned to appear for an arraignment in United States District Court in Los Angeles on January 26.
This investigation was conducted by the United States Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and the Food and Drug Administration's Office of Criminal Investigation.
John M. Taylor, the FDA's Associate Commissioner for Regulatory Affairs, stated: "This indictment is a good demonstration of inter-agency cooperation at its best. FDA will continue to work closely with its law enforcement colleagues as part of its absolute commitment to aggressive enforcement of the laws that protect patients from unsafe medications."
Release No. 04-001
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