Alleged Sale of Fake Antibiotic Draws Lawsuit from Texas AG

May 9, 2011

The Texas Attorney General’s Office is suing companies from Texas and Georgia accused of misleading mostly Hispanic consumers by selling a dietary supplement under a name similar to the Spanish translation of a widely used antibiotic.

The lawsuit filed May 5 in state district court claims the companies further their marketing ploy by making the packaging similar to that of Amoxicillin. The suit says the antibiotic was once available in Mexico without a prescription.

The state said it obtained a temporary restraining order against San Martin Distributing Inc. of Houston and Lawrenceville Ga.-based Multimex Distributions Inc.

Multimex owner Sandra Salazar says her company didn’t intend to mislead customers. Officials with San Martin didn’t immediately return a phone message.

The lawsuit seeks civil penalties of up to $20,000 per violation.