Market inspectors in the Binh Duong province raided a factory near Ho Chi Minh City, where they discovered used condoms being repackaged to be sold at the market. An inspector said the factory's 34-year-old owner, a woman, confessed they purchased the condoms from someone else, the state-owned Tuoi Tre newspaper reported, according to the AP.
After buying the condoms from a man, they were washed and reshaped, then packed in plastic bags, according to the newspaper.
Vietnam police bust ring selling 'recycled condoms' https://t.co/5IKs0iiNfW pic.twitter.com/b3csHiwX8T
— Reuters (@Reuters) September 24, 2020
Video taken by Vietnam's state broadcaster VTV and obtained by the Reuters news agency shows sacks filled with condoms. It also shows tools apparently used to wash and reshape the condoms in the factory.
A woman detained during the bust told police that the used prophylactics were first boiled in water then dried and reshaped on a wooden phallus before being repackaged and resold.
VTV said it was not clear how many of the recycled condoms had already been sold. The detained woman said she had received $0.17 for every kilogramme of recycled condoms she produced.
Neither she nor the owner of the warehouse were available for comment.
VTV said it was unclear how many used condoms were already resold, according to Reuters.
A health official quoted by Tuoi Tre newspaper said the condoms were an extreme health risk to users, the AP reported.
