Customs seize fake Juul products in Philadelphia

US Customs officers have seized more than 1,152 counterfeit Juul pods, three chargers and a Juul device in Philadelphia.

Philadelphia Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers intercepted the cache of counterfeit Juul products in an international parcel that was sent from China. If genuine, the items would have a Manufacturer Suggested Retail Price (MSRP) of nearly $4,700.

The parcel was manifested as “plastic pipe sample’, but contained 36 cartons of Juul pods that was destined to an address in Newark, Delaware. Each carton contains 8 packs of four pods each. Officers suspected the products to be counterfeit and detained the parcel. It’s not yet known if the contents of the pods are safe or harmful.

Last year, Juul filed a lawsuit against 30 Chinese companies accused of selling fake versions of its e-cigarettes on eBay, winning a temporary restraining order last September.

The burgeoning popularity of nicotine vaporisers as a healthier alternative to tobacco products like cigarettes is driving counterfeiters to cash in on that success by producing almost identical copies of the products, and claiming they are the genuine article.

“One of the chief reasons why CBP takes intellectual property rights enforcement so serious is because of the potential health and safety threats counterfeit goods like these electronic nicotine products pose to American consumers,” said Casey Durst, CBP Director of Field Operations in Baltimore.

“CBP will continue to work closely with our trade and consumer safety partners to identify and seize counterfeit merchandise, especially those products that pose potential harm to American consumers.”