A North Texas couple has pleaded guilty to conspiring to smuggle and sell unregistered pesticides and misbranded veterinary drugs, federal prosecutors said.
Thao Duong and Lam Mai, both of Garland, admitted to operating an online business that sold veterinary drugs and pesticides smuggled into the United States from Mexico, according to a release from the U.S. Department of Justice.
Prosecutors said evidence showed Duong began selling animal care products around 2011 through various online platforms, supplying customers across the country. The products were primarily used by people involved in rooster-fighting ventures, authorities said.
Duong is not a veterinarian and did not require customers to provide prescriptions to purchase veterinary drugs that were produced in Mexico and not approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for use in the United States, according to the DOJ.
In 2018, Duong launched a website that became her primary method for selling and distributing the drugs and pesticides. After the site went live, Duong entered agreements with multiple co-conspirators to obtain products she knew had been smuggled into the country, prosecutors said.
Court records show that from 2018 to 2022, Duong obtained about $2.4 million worth of smuggled merchandise from her co-conspirators.
Mai served as the shipping manager for the operation, authorities said. After orders were placed, he packaged the pesticides and veterinary drugs and shipped them to customers nationwide using the U.S. Postal Service and other carriers.
“No one should profit from bringing illegal chemicals into the United States and poisoning American communities,” said Assistant Administrator Jeffrey A. Hall for EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. “Illegal Mexican pesticides and animal steroids are a toxic combination. The guilty plea in this case underscores the importance of the cooperative efforts of federal, state, and local agencies to disrupt smuggling operations and secure our nation’s borders from foreign harm.”
Duong and Mai are scheduled to be sentenced June 9.
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