Beginning in March 2020, Kwong Yau Lam sold products marketed as “Virus Shut Out Cards” that were not registered and authorized by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Upon hanging a card from a lanyard, it purportedly protected the consumer from viruses. On the contrary, it offered no proven protection from viruses, including COVID-19.

Lam sold 100 Virus Shut Out Cards to three merchants in Guam and told them that the product protected people from viruses. Lam ordered three more boxes containing 900 pieces from his relative in Hong Kong. U.S. Customs and Border Protection in Honolulu, Hawaii, seized two boxes from that order. After the seizure, agents with Homeland Security Investigations interviewed Lam. He told the agents that he did not get approval from any government agency to import the Virus Shut Out Cards from Hong Kong, and that he had not sold any cards in Guam. Lam lied when he made this statement because evidence showed that he sold the cards to merchants.

• Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA)
• Title 18 U.S. Criminal Code (TITLE 18)