A representative from Pfizer also testified, opining that the counterfeit pills were of reasonably good quality in terms of appearance because the pills appeared “very, very similar to the product we make.” JA at 191. The counterfeit tablets were the correct shape and color, and possessed the trademarked “VGR 100” and “Pfizer” markings. The Pfizer representative testified that “[e]ven if you've seen the legitimate cluster pack before, you would think that this is probably real.” JA at 190–91. The jury found Hucks guilty on both counts of mail fraud and smuggling goods into the United States, but acquitted him on the trafficking in counterfeit goods counts.
Hucks contends that the evidence was insufficient to establish that he ever defrauded or intended to defraud his customers. Culled to its essence, his argument is that no reasonable person purchasing (purported) Viagra or Cialis outside a bar or club, at a flea market, or on the street would believe the products to be genuine, and that there is no evidence that Hucks falsely suggested to his customers that the pills were real. We have no difficulty rejecting this argument.
United States v. Hucks, 13-1511, 2014 WL 521244 (3d Cir. Feb. 11, 2014)
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