AUSTIN, Texas (Legal Newsline) — Katz Boutique and owner Bao Quoc Nguyen will pay $1.175 million after allegations of violating the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act and a Texas nuisance law, state Attorney General Ken Paxton has announced.
Nguyen and his companies entered into an agreed final judgment and permanent injunction. The injunction bans Nguyen and the stores from selling alleged synthetic drugs and controlled substances.
There are Katz Boutique stores throughout Harris County. They sell smoking accessories and adult novelty items. According to Paxton’s office, the stores sold synthetic cannabinoids labeled as “Kush” with deceptive labels.
These labels allegedly said the product had innocuous-sounding legal plant substances as main ingredients. Paxton’s office argued that, in actuality, these products contained highly dangerous cannabinoids that can induce severe paranoia, psychotic episodes, violent delusions, kidney damage, suicidal thoughts and self-mutilation, he says.
The Drug Enforcement Administration cites synthetic cannabinoids as the most abused substance by high school seniors. Research shows that overdoses from these drugs are increasing in Texas.
Evidence found during this case showed the Katz Boutique stores sold more than 90,000 packets of synthetic drugs to Texas consumers since 2013.