Police in An Giang Province have filed criminal charges against Nguyen Duc Minh Tam, who rented a house and turned it into an illegal production site for counterfeit fish sauce and laundry detergent in the middle of a residential area.

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Suspect Nguyen Duc Minh Tam. Photo: T.L

On November 4, the Division for Investigation of Corruption, Economic Crimes, Smuggling, and Environmental Violations (PC03 - An Giang Provincial Police) officially prosecuted the case and charged Nguyen Duc Minh Tam, 39, a resident of Vinh Te Ward, for "producing counterfeit goods being food, foodstuffs, or food additives."

Earlier, authorities inspected Tam's facility and caught him red-handed producing fake goods. They seized 469 plastic canisters filled with a dark liquid that smelled like fish sauce (each canister held 4 liters), over 3,000 liters of liquid with the scent of laundry detergent or fabric softener, and 120 bags of fabric softener labeled "Hygiene" (a Thai brand).

At the police station, Tam confessed that he used to sell general merchandise. He later came up with the idea of producing fake laundry detergent and condiments to make more money.

He hired workers and rented a house in Long Xuyen Ward, An Giang Province, to use as a production site. Tam also purchased chemicals, packaging, machinery, and learned how to mix the products by watching online tutorials.

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Confiscated materials at Tam's production site. Photo: T.L

For the fake fish sauce, Tam combined water, salt, coloring agents, and artificial flavors in large tanks to create a liquid resembling fish sauce. He then poured the liquid into used "Nam Ngu De Nhi" brand bottles that he had collected from scrap dealers.

He packed 15 bottles per box and sold each box for 300,000 VND (approximately 12.20 USD). Tam supplied these products to various eateries in the area.

As for the fake laundry detergent, he mixed chemicals in large tanks to create pink and white liquids that mimicked the scent and texture of real detergent or softener. He then poured these into bags labeled "Hygiene" and distributed them to small local stores and roadside stalls.

Tran Tuyen