Workers involved in the production of counterfeit goods at an illegal facility in Hóc Môn District. — Photo courtesy of the police

HCM CITY — Police in HCM City have arrested a business couple for allegedly producing and distributing 70,000 counterfeit bottles of Eagle Brand Medicated Oil, a popular medicated product imported from Singapore.

Võ Thành Tâm, director of Thanh Thuý Cosmetics Co., Ltd., and his wife, Ngô Ánh Hồng, director of Mỹ Trinh Cosmetics Co., Ltd., were taken into custody on Tuesday (July 1) along with 15 employees.

All face charges of 'producing and trading counterfeit medicine', according to the city’s Economic Police Division (PC03).

The arrests came after police raided two facilities linked to the couple in former Hóc Môn District (now Bà Điểm Commune), where officers caught workers in the act of producing and storing large volumes of unlicensed products. 

Seized items included fake Eagle Brand Medicated Oil, Thai-branded moisturising creams and herbal oils, and Korean roll-on medicated oils, among others.

The counterfeit products were falsely labeled as foreign imports and were not registered with the Ministry of Health for authorised production or circulation.

Investigators said the operation began in 2022, when the couple started purchasing unverified raw materials, bottles, labels, and packaging from unknown sources.

They then recruited workers to process, bottle, and package the products for market distribution.

Preliminary evidence showed at least 70,000 bottles of fake Eagle Brand Medicated Oil were sold, with a total estimated value exceeding VNĐ6 billion (US$235,000).

Police also seized hundreds of thousands of other suspected counterfeit items from multiple locations, all of which are undergoing forensic analysis.

Eagle Brand Medicated Oil is a widely used topical remedy produced in Singapore. Known for its cooling sensation and distinctive aroma, it is commonly used across Asia for relieving headaches, muscle pain, insect bites, and congestion.

The investigation is ongoing. — VNS