President of LM Import-Export Sentenced to 22 Months in Federal Prison, Fined $10,000 for Importing Banned Children's Products

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U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission

Jun 05, 2013, 05:13 ET

WASHINGTON, June 5, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- U.S. District Court Judge for the Southern District of Florida Kathleen M. Williams issued a significant sentence in federal court for violations of U.S. consumer product safety laws. Hung Lam, President of LM Import-Export Inc., of Miami, Fla., was sentenced to 22 months incarceration in federal prison, three years of supervised release and a $10,000 fine for pleading guilty to conspiracy to traffic and smuggle in banned children's products that contained lead and small parts, in violation of federal laws enforced by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC). Mr. Lam was also convicted of one count of trafficking in counterfeit goods.

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From about April 2000 through May 2011, defendant Lam and his related corporations LM Import-Export Inc., Lam's Investment Corp., and LK Toys Corporation, conspired to sell and distribute in commerce banned children's products imported from China. These actions were in violation of the Consumer Product Safety Act and the Federal Hazardous Substances Act. These products allegedly presented the risk of choking, aspiration, and ingestion, and some contained lead above the federal limits.

"The sentences handed down by the court against these repeat violators are a victory for consumers and the rule of law," said CPSC Chairman Inez Tenenbaum. "I commend the staff at CPSC, Department of Justice, and Homeland Security for their cooperation and success in bringing the defendants to justice. This result demonstrates how serious we are about protecting American consumers from dangerous products and defending our consumer product safety laws."

To learn more about this conviction and the related civil penalty and injunction imposed, see the press release issued by the Department of Justice and the consent decrees in 2011 and 2012.

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission is charged with protecting the public from unreasonable risks of injury or death associated with the use of thousands of types of consumer products under the agency's jurisdiction. Deaths, injuries, and property damage from consumer product incidents cost the nation more than $1 trillion annually. CPSC is committed to protecting consumers and families from products that pose a fire, electrical, chemical or mechanical hazard. CPSC's work to ensure the safety of consumer products—such as toys, cribs, power tools, cigarette lighters and household chemicals--contributed to a decline in the rate of deaths and injuries associated with consumer products over the past 30 years.

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SOURCE U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission