40s Woman Given Probation for Selling Fake Diet Products Made with Harmful Substances

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[Asia Economy Intern Reporter Kim Yeon-ju] A woman in her 40s who manufactured and sold fake diet products containing harmful substances that can cause cancer and birth defects has been sentenced to prison with a suspended sentence.

The Ulsan District Court, Criminal Division 8 (Judge Jung Hyun-soo), announced on the 18th that A (40), who was indicted on charges of fraud and violation of the Food Sanitation Act, was sentenced to 2 years in prison with a 3-year suspension and fined 20 million won. She was also ordered to perform 200 hours of community service.

The court stated the sentencing reasons, saying, "The crimes were committed repeatedly over a considerable period, and the amount of money defrauded was substantial, requiring severe punishment," but also considered "the fact that no harmful substances were detected in the manufactured products or that the amounts were small, that the defendant herself consumed the harmful substances and thus cannot be seen as having a high awareness of their harmfulness, that she donated a significant amount to the COVID-19 special relief fund, and that she is raising her young daughter alone while reflecting on her wrongdoing."

A was tried on charges of manufacturing fake diet products by filling capsules with powder containing harmful substances such as phenolphthalein or sibutramine at her home in Jung-gu, Ulsan, from February 2017 to November of the following year, and selling them 1,298 times to five wholesalers, earning a total of 883 million won.

Phenolphthalein is a harmful substance banned from sale since August 1988 due to side effects such as cancer induction, birth defects, and endocrine disorders.

Additionally, sibutramine has been designated as a harmful substance due to the risk of cardiovascular side effects.

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