Philadelphia Man Pleads Guilty on Counterfeit Drug Charges

Victor Lamar Coates of Philadelphia has entered a guilty plea to charges of conspiracy to traffic counterfeit Viagra and Cialis and for smuggling, trafficking and introducing the misbranded prescription drugs into interstate commerce. Coates admitted to illegally distributing over 10,000 counterfeit and misbranded tablets, including tablets he illegally imported directly from China, according to a government release. FDA, Eli Lilly and Pfizer conducted testing on the counterfeit tablets, which revealed they did not contain the ingredients listed on their labeling. He faces up to five years in prison for the conspiracy and for introducing misbranded drugs into interstate commerce, as well as up to three years for introducing misbranded drugs into commerce.

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