Jeonnam Police Arrest 17 Members of Gang Producing and Distributing 620,000 Fake Masks

Distributed by Making Packaging Similar to Mask Companies

Jeonnam Provincial Police Agency Building Exterior

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Chunsu] As the nationwide spread of COVID-19 caused a shortage of masks, 17 individuals who produced and sold counterfeit masks taking advantage of this situation were arrested by the police.

The Jeonnam Provincial Police Agency's Intelligent Crime Investigation Unit announced on the 23rd that they apprehended 17 people, including Mr. A, on charges of manufacturing and distributing fake masks by creating packaging similar to that of officially authorized KF94 masks produced by legitimate companies (violations of the Pharmaceutical Affairs Act, fraud, etc.).

From February 10 to mid-April, Mr. A and 16 others are accused of purchasing large quantities of unauthorized bulk masks from Mr. B and others at their company located in Gimpo, Gyeonggi Province, placing the bulk masks into similar packaging, and producing and distributing 620,000 counterfeit masks on the market.

The Jeonnam police received intelligence that fake masks were being sold on an online mask trading site, confirmed from authorized companies that these were counterfeit masks, and tracked down and arrested Mr. A and the 16 others.

At the scene, they seized 18 printing plates for packaging printing, 2 sealing manufacturing machines, 330,000 pieces of similar mask packaging, and 15,000 uncertified masks.

A Jeonnam police official stated, “This is a serious illegal act that causes great harm to public health and creates public anxiety. We will continue to strictly crack down on the production and distribution of counterfeit masks with significantly inferior performance.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.