Carcinogenic Pill Hawker Sentenced to Three Months
Philadelphia resident Mimi Trieu, 46, was sentenced on March 10th to three months in prison for importing and distributing four million fake diet pills that contained a carcinogenic chemical solvent among other dangerous ingredients.
The U.S. Department of Justice announced her sentencing was a result of her guilty plea to an 18 count indictment including 11 counts of mail fraud, one count of conspiracy to smuggle illegal merchandise, six counts of distribution of Sibutramine, a schedule IV controlled substance. Besides the Sibutramine, the pills also contained an anti-seizure medication, and a chemical solvent that is considered a possible carcinogen.
Trieu, a Philadelphia resident, imported and distributed diet pills, and even after being warned that the pills did not have FDA approval, continued to sell them.
She conspired to smuggle the pills from China in the mail using packages with false customs declarations and then falsely advertised the pills as containing “natural ingredients” as well as lied to customers about the provenance of the pills and the FDA warning.
In addition to three months imprisonment, she has been fined $5,000, and will complete three years of supervised release including eight months of home detention, and forefeit $250,000.