Food and Drug Administration  Office of Criminal Investigations

	U.S. Department of Justice Press Release

For Immediate Release February 16, 2017	United States Department of Justice Northern District of Georgia

 

ATLANTA - Ismail Ali Khan has been convicted following a six-day jury trial of conspiracy, illegal importation of misbranded drug products from China, receiving misbranded drugs that had moved in interstate commerce, and making false statements in order to become a naturalized U.S. citizen.

 

 

“Khan led a conspiracy that caused misbranded drugs to be illegally imported and distributed in the Atlanta area and throughout the southeastern United States,” said U. S. Attorney John Horn. “Because the labeling on the products failed to warn consumers of the dangers in taking the products, consumers’ health and safety were placed in jeopardy by Khan’s conduct.”

 

“Distributing unapproved and misbranded drugs disguised as all-natural supplements places the U.S. public health at risk,” said Justin Green, Special Agent in Charge, FDA Office of Criminal Investigations’ Miami Field Office. “We will remain vigilant in our efforts to protect American consumers from these fraudulent and potentially dangerous products.”

 

According to U.S. Attorney Horn, the charges and other information presented in court: In early 2011, Khan and his brother, Ahmed Ali Khan, began ordering male enhancement products from China marketed under names such as “Maxman,” “Herb Viagra,” “Rock Hard Weekend,” “Stiff Nights,” “Happy Passengers,” “Hard Ten Days,” “Zhen Gongfu,” and “African Black Ant.” These products contained sildenafil, the active pharmaceutical ingredient in Viagra, and/or tadalafil, the active pharmaceutical ingredient in Cialis. Both Viagra and Cialis can be obtained in the U.S. only with a prescription from a doctor.

 

However, the labeling for the products that Khan and his brother imported and distributed did not state that they contained sildenafil or tadalafil. Instead, the products were misleadingly labeled as “all-natural” and “herbal.” The labeling for the products also failed to warn consumers about the medical risks associated with taking sildenafil and tadalafil.

 

Khan and his brother illegally imported these drugs from China by having shippers in China falsely declare on the Customs declaration attached to the shipping boxes containing the products that the boxes contained “tea,” “coffee,” “beauty products,” and other false entries.

 

In order to evade detection by authorities, Khan, his brother, and their co-conspirators used multiple mailing addresses rented in multiple business names at locations in the Atlanta, Georgia, metropolitan area to receive the shipments from China. Khan and his co-conspirators would then move the products to storage units where they would prepare orders for wholesale distributors of the products. Khan and his co-conspirators used aliases, false addresses, and fake business names to misrepresent the nature of their business when renting the storage units and mail boxes.

 

In August 2013, during the course of the conspiracy, Khan applied to become a naturalized U.S. citizen. On the application form, Khan falsely stated that he had never committed a criminal offense for which he had not been arrested. Then on January 6, 2014, in an interview with Citizenship and Naturalization Services, and again on March 14, 2014, just before he took the oath to become a naturalized citizen, Khan falsely stated that he had never committed a crime for which he had not been arrested. Based upon Khan’s false statements, he became a naturalized U.S. citizen on March 14, 2014.

 

Ismail Ali Khan, 29, of Decatur, Georgia, was convicted on Monday, February 13, 2017. Sentencing for Khan is scheduled for April 27, 2017, at 10:00 a.m., before U.S. District Judge Steve C. Jones. Khan was arrested on May 29, 2014, and he has remained in custody since his arrest. At his sentencing hearing, Judge Jones will sign an order that revokes Khan’s U.S. citizenship.

 

This case was investigated by the Food and Drug Administration, Office of Criminal Investigations, the United States Postal Inspection Service, and Homeland Security Investigations.

 

Assistant United States Attorneys William L. McKinnon, Jr. and Trevor C. Wilmot prosecuted the case.

 

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016.

 

The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

USAO - Georgia, Northern

 

Topic: 

Consumer Protection