Unveiling the Counterfeit: Two Facilities Uncovered for Producing Fake Laundry Detergent, Raking in Ill-Gotten Profits of Hundreds of Millions of Dong

Police in Thanh Hoa province informed that the police of Vinh Loc district had just coordinated with the police of Te Nong and Tan Phuc communes in Nong Cong district to raid and arrest two facilities specializing in producing, distributing, and selling counterfeit OMO-branded laundry detergent and dishwashing liquid products on the Shopee e-commerce platform.

Every month, the suspects sold over 4,000 counterfeit OMO-branded laundry detergent products on the market, equivalent to approximately VND 1 billion worth of genuine products, earning them hundreds of millions of dong in illicit profits.

Through intelligence gathering and investigation, the Vinh Loc District Police discovered suspicious activities on the Shopee Vietnam e-commerce platform, indicating the sale of counterfeit OMO-branded goods. A special task force was established to address this issue.

The process of counterfeiting OMO-branded products and the seized goods ready to be distributed to the market. (Photo: CA)

On August 8, the task force dispatched two working groups to simultaneously raid Dong Hung Warehouse, located in Dong Hung village, Te Nong commune, and a production facility owned by Le Ha Tuan, situated in Thai Son village, Tan Phuc commune.

At Dong Hung Warehouse, the police seized 198 boxes of counterfeit OMO laundry detergent, one computer, one order printing machine, and 110 kg of unlabeled cardboard boxes.

Meanwhile, at Le Ha Tuan’s production facility, the police confiscated over 430 boxes of counterfeit OMO laundry detergent, two extraction tanks, 160 kg of OMO-branded detergent bags, a box of product seals, 540 kg of OMO-labeled cardboard boxes, a mixing machine, 20 bags of chemicals and cold salt, approximately 600 liters of ready-to-bottle detergent, and 47 boxes of counterfeit Sunlight dishwashing liquid.

Hundreds of packaging materials ready to be filled were seized by the task force at Le Ha Tuan’s production facility. (Photo: CA)

Initially, the Criminal Investigation Agency of Vinh Loc District Police identified Le Ha Tuan as the producer of the counterfeit OMO-branded products.

Operating under the guise of a licensed sanitary paper production facility, Le Ha Tuan transformed his workshop into multiple rooms to store raw materials, mixing and bottling equipment, and counterfeit OMO-branded goods.

To carry out his criminal activities, Tuan learned the counterfeiting process from YouTube videos. He then purchased chemicals through social media platforms and hired workers to mix and formulate the products. Additionally, he arranged for the printing of counterfeit OMO packaging and used it to bottle and package the goods, supplying them to individuals specializing in online sales.

Inside Le Ha Tuan’s production area (marked with X), the police seized a large quantity of chemicals and equipment used for counterfeiting. (Photo: CA)

Le Tuan Thanh was identified as the purchaser of the counterfeit products from Le Ha Tuan. He then advertised and sold these products on the Shopee e-commerce platform and through live streaming on social media, using attractive promotions and “flash sales” to attract customers nationwide.

When customers placed orders, he arranged for delivery and payment through shipping companies or express delivery services.

Currently, the Criminal Investigation Agency of Vinh Loc District Police is temporarily detaining Le Ha Tuan, Le Tuan Thanh, and several other related individuals while expanding the investigation and handling the case in accordance with the law.