A Massachusetts man pleaded guilty in federal court Thursday for selling lanyards that he falsely claimed could warn off viruses.
Prosecutors in the U.S. attorney's office said that instead of protecting the wearer against microbes, the lanyards that Jiule Lin sold online beginning last spring actually contained pesticide.
U.S. Attorney Andrew Lelling said prosecutors have zero tolerance for anyone who seeks to illegally exploit fears during the COVID-19 pandemic.
"At the height of a raging pandemic killing thousands of people a day, this defendant tried to profit from conning people," U.S. Attorney Andrew Lelling said in a statement.
The 38-year-old Quincy man pleaded guilty Thursday in Boston to a count of selling an unregistered pesticide. A message left with him on Friday was not immediately returned.
Sentencing in the case has not been scheduled. Lin faces up to one year in prison and a fine of up to $25,000.
