Millions of condoms that were made in China and fraudulently packaged under the Trojan brand were seized in a federal raid of a New York City-based counterfeiting ring, Newsday reports (newsday.com, 5/30).
The ring was charged with selling millions of the phony prophylactics in discount stores in the New York metropolitan area and other parts of the country. According to the article, the fake condoms are packaged in a plastic wrapper—not in aluminum foil like the real Trojans.
Agents from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Food and Drug Administration arrested at least eight people for smuggling the counterfeit condoms into the country over the past three years. The ring also distributed such other brand-name knockoffs as Apple iPods, Major League Baseball and National Football League caps, and Marvel comic books.
The report didn’t mention whether Trojan had received complaints from consumers who’d mistakenly bought the imitations. But a source familiar with the federal investigation said that while the counterfeit condoms were of inferior quality, samples had been tested and they were no riskier to use than legitimate ones.
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