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Toothpaste Importers Face Charges In California

Criminal charges grow out of last year's toothpaste recalls

March 7, 2008

Toothpaste • Toothpaste Importers Face Charges In California • Gilchrist & Soames Recalls Toothpaste • Toothpaste Scare Spreads to Hospitals, Prisons • China Pledges to Improve Food Safety • Another Importer Recalls Chinese Toothpaste • Colgate Warns of Counterfeit Toothpaste • Importer Recalls Toothpaste After FDA Warning • China Faults U.S. FDA In Toothpaste Flap • FDA Warns Chinese Toothpaste May Be Contaminated • Chinese Toothpaste Scare Spreads to Canada • FDA Bans Toothpaste from China after 51 Deaths in Panama • Foreign Toothpaste Illegally Imported, Sold in U.S. --- Complaints • Crest

Authorities in Los Angeles have filed criminal charges against the executives of two companies that imported and distributed toothpaste later found to be tainted with toxic chemicals.

Los Angeles City Attorney Rocky Delgadillo, the City's chief prosecutor, working in conjunction with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, has cited Vernon Sales, Inc., and Selective Imports Corporation, two California companies that allegedly imported and distributed more than 70,000 tubes of toothpaste containing the poisonous chemical diethylene glycol (DEG), also known as diglycol.

The toothpaste, manufactured in China, was recalled after it was found to contain the substance, which is banned from entering the U.S. in certain products.

Kamyab Toofer, President of Vernon Sales, Inc., and Pejman Mossay, the company's vice-president, were each charged with 14 criminal counts for receiving, selling and delivering an adulterated drug – any product containing a banned substance. Frahad Nazarian, President of Selective Imports Corp., and Yones Ghermezi, the company's vice-president, were also charged with two criminal counts each for receiving, selling and delivering products containing DEG. Each count carries a maximum penalty of one year in jail and a $1,000 fine.

In addition to its common use in antifreeze and as a solvent, diethylene glycol is used in China as a thickening agent substitute for glycerin, a sweetener used in cough syrup and toothpaste. The use of DEG in toothpaste and cough syrup is strictly prohibited by the FDA, as there are potential risks of toxicity and injury from chronic exposure in certain populations including children and individuals with kidney or liver disease.

In May 2007, the FDA initiated an investigation after authorities were alerted to the importation of 74,000 tubes of "Cooldent" toothpaste from China into Long Beach, California. The toothpaste had been flagged for immediate impound after a similar shipment of the product to Panama by the same Chinese manufacturer was previously discovered to contain DEG.

In the course of the FDA investigation, Delgadillo say it was discovered that between December 2005 and May 2007, approximately 78,336 tubes of Spearmint-flavored "Cooldent" toothpaste were sold by the Vernon-based Selective Imports Corporation to distributors across the country. Additionally, nearly 10,000 tubes of Fluoride "Cooldent" toothpaste were also distributed in early 2007.

Delgadillo says quantities of the toothpaste were purchased by Vernon Sales, Inc., which resold some of the toothpaste to stores and businesses located in the City of Los Angeles.

Investigators believe Selective Imports Corporation and Vernon Sales, Inc., in just the last 12 months alone, distributed 480 tubes of "Cooldent" toothpaste containing DEG to stores and businesses in the City of Los Angeles – most of which was placed on store shelves for purchase by the public.

"The FDA Office of Criminal Investigations considers this illegal conduct very serious and is fully committed to investigating and supporting the prosecution of those who may endanger the public health with tainted products," said Dan Henson, Special Agent in Charge, FDA Office of Criminal Investigations, Los Angeles Field Office. "We continue to look forward to working with our law enforcement partners and commend the Los Angeles City Attorney's Office for their diligence."

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