Jamal Khattab, 49, of Katy, and Fayez Al-Jabri, 45, of Chicago, were charged in an 11-count indictment.
The indictment charges Khattab with one count of conspiracy, one count of smuggling goods into the United States, two counts of trafficking in counterfeit goods, two counts of trafficking in misbranded drugs and two counts of trafficking in counterfeit drugs. Al-Jabri is charged with one count of trafficking in counterfeit goods, one count of trafficking in misbranded drugs and one count of trafficking in counterfeit drugs.
The indictment alleges that between June 2010 and March 2012, Khattab and Al-Jabri smuggled counterfeit Viagra from China to the U.S., which would then allegedly get shipped to either Houston or Chicago in bulk for distribution.
According to the DOJ, the indictment goes on to say that between January 2011 and September 2011, Khattab and Al-Jabri delivered around 17,000 counterfeit and misbranded Viagra tablets on an undercover agent.
The Department of Justice says it initially became aware of the alleged smuggling operation in July 2010. They say a package shipped from China to Houston was intercepted in by customs agents in San Francisco, which led to the investigation.
Both men face up to five years in prison for the conspiracy, upon conviction, as well as a $250,000 fine.
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