Phan Danh Dương Bảo and Hồ Thụy Bích Dân. — Photos from the police

ĐẮK LẮK — The police of Central Highlands province Đắk Lắk on Saturday announced they have officially launched legal proceedings against a married couple for producing and trading counterfeit coffee.

Over 20 tonnes of the fake product, made primarily from soybean powder and chemical additives, had already made its way to market before authorities intervened.

Phan Danh Dương Bảo, 52 years old, a resident of Ninh Xuân Commune, Ninh Hòa Town, Khánh Hòa Province, has been detained for “producing and trading counterfeit goods” in the form of ground coffee. His wife, Hồ Thụy Bích Dân, 47 years old, has also been indicted but is currently under house arrest and banned from leaving her locality.

According to initial findings, on May 22, the provincial economic police caught Bảo and his son delivering 120kg of ground coffee – packaged in unlabelled silver plastic bags – to a woman in Thành Công Ward, Buôn Ma Thuột City. Bảo failed to produce any documents on the origin of the goods.

Following the seizure, police summoned those involved and conducted an urgent search of the couple’s manufacturing site in Khánh Hòa. The raid uncovered various machines and equipment used to roast and package the counterfeit coffee, along with two tonnes of raw materials – including soybeans, sugar, colouring agents, and flavourings – as well as 1,604 bags of finished coffee weighing nearly one tonne.

Under questioning, the couple admitted to purchasing the machinery and ingredients to manufacture fake coffee. They revealed that only 3 to 9kg of actual coffee beans were used per 100kg of product. The rest consisted of roasted soybeans and chemical additives for colour and aroma.

From 2024 to the present, the couple allegedly produced more than 20 tonnes of fake ground coffee, distributing it to several provinces including Bình Định, Lâm Đồng, and Đắk Lắk.

Police have warned that the counterfeit coffee, mainly composed of burnt soybeans mixed with colourants and flavouring agents, poses serious health risks. Prolonged consumption may irritate the digestive tract, damage the liver and kidneys, and increase the risk of cancer.

Investigations into the case are ongoing. — VNS