The Ministry of Interior’s Counter Counterfeit Committee has destroyed over 130 tonnes of unapproved products and fake medicines during the first five months of this year.

The products were seized from 20 cases investigated by the Committee and they were destroyed at the Dangkor dumpsite in Choeung Ek commune, Dangkor district, Phnom Penh in the presence of 300 officials.

Committee chief Meach Sophana said the destroyed products mostly comprised of illegally imported medicine, fake medicine and unapproved Chinese traditional medicines.

Also included in the haul were cosmetic products, water, orange juice and cakes.

Sophana said his committee will implement measures and continue to investigate illegal and unapproved product trafficking in the Cambodian market.

He said: “Our siblings (citizens) asked me why I was able to retrieve such great amounts of these products.

“There are many online products which we can easily identify. There were a lot of cases before as well, but they weren’t sold online, which made it harder to investigate.”

Sophana said some of the perpetrators were sentenced to five to 10 years in prison, while others were suspended, reprimanded and required to sign a contract or fined.

If any consumers were found to have suffered after consuming the goods, the perpetrators had to compensate the victims, he said.

Minister of Health Mam Bun Heng said if citizens do not obey the law, the ministries will issue them with fines.

He said perpetrators will waste their money and time if they continue to traffic unapproved goods, as well as potentially harm consumers who buy their products.

“Buyers have to check the products they purchase by checking expiry dates and logos, especially on medicines.”

He also urged the police to take action against people who continue to import unapproved goods into the Cambodian market.

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