Dallas Man Who Trafficked In Counterfeit Pharmaceutical Drugs Is Sentenced To 37 Months In Federal Prison And Ordered To Pay $633,000 In Restitution

DALLAS — Charles Anthony Jones, 48, of Dallas, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Barbara M. G. Lynn to 37 months in federal prison and ordered to pay $633,019 in restitution to Pfizer, Bayer and Eli Lilly for trafficking in counterfeit pharmaceutical drugs. Specifically, Jones pleaded guilty in November 2012 to one count of aiding and abetting the trafficking of counterfeit goods. Today’s announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Sarah R. Saldaña of the Northern District of Texas.

According to plea papers filed in the case, on March 2, 2012, an undercover police officer texted Jones and asked Jones if he could meet him the following week in the neighborhood of a hotel in Irving, Texas. (Jones had previously sold the undercover officer pharmaceutical drugs to treat erectile dysfunction.) On March 6, 2012, the officer texted Jones and arranged a meeting to purchase a 30-count bottle of “Cialis” the following day for $150. The next day, Jones delivered a bottle marked “Cialis” that contained 30 20mg tablets to the undercover officer in exchange for $150. The bottle was marked with what appeared to be the genuine Cialis trademark and the bottle was clearly marked “PRESCRIPTION ONLY MEDICINE.”

Jones has been in custody since his arrest on August 22, 2012, on an indictment alleging that he and other unnamed individuals imported pharmaceutical drug products and packaging that bore the trademarks of certain prescription pharmaceuticals used to treat erectile dysfunction without the drug manufacturer’s authorization, and then resold the drugs to the public using the Internet to facilitate the sales. Jones was never licensed by the FDA or the Texas Health and Human Services Commission to distribute pharmaceutical drugs.

The investigation was conducted by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Office of Criminal Investigations (FDA-OCI) and the Irving Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason Schall was in charge of the prosecution.