US President Donald Trump answers questions from reporters during an event
about protecting seniors, in the East Room of the White House, Thursday, April
30, 2020, in Washington.
The US Justice Department sued a Chinese company for selling nearly a half
million fake and substandard N95 respirator to US buyers in April as the
COVID-19 pandemic swept the country. In a complaint filed in federal court in
Brooklyn, New York, the department said Guangdong-based King Year Packaging and
Printing shipped three batches of purported N95 masks, needed to protect
medical and other personnel from the coronavirus, to US buyers.
The company falsely claimed the 495,200 masks it shipped were met the N95
standard and also falsely claimed they were certified by the US National
Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), according to the
complaint. The complaint indicated the importer of the fake N95 masks paid more
than $1 million for them.
“The charges alleged in this complaint show a blatant disregard for the safety
of American citizens,” FBI agent Douglas Korneski, who investigated the masks
deal, said in a statement. “Had it not been for the actions of the
investigative team, this defendant would have put first responders, hospital
employees, and other front-line workers directly in harm’s way with faulty
equipment just to make a buck.” The Chinese company was charged with four
counts of importing misbranded and substandard health products and making false
to the US Food and Drug Administration. Each charge carries a maximum fine of
$500,000, or if greater, twice what the company earned in selling the masks.
[AFP]
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