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LA City Attorney Targeting Unlicensed Sellers Of Pharmaceuticals

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — City Attorney Mike Feuer announced plans Thursday to pursue misdemeanor charges against people selling pharmaceuticals without licenses at swap meets and other places around the city.

Antibiotics, steroid creams, diet pills, diuretics, silicon products and other items can only be dispensed through prescriptions or cannot be legally sold in the United States, according to Feuer.

These drugs are illegal and pose a hazard to the health and safety of consumers, he said.

Cases have been brought against five people suspected of selling these products without proper authorization, Feuer said, and there are plans to file more next week.

If convicted, Maria Bonilla, Vicenta Munoz, Isaac Ramirez, Ana Bahena and Gloria Fuentes face fines up to $10,000 and one to two years in jail, according to the city attorney.

"We'll continue aggressively to prosecute those who dispense these drugs that endanger communities throughout Los Angeles," Feuer said.

The crackdown involved the Health Authority Law Enforcement Task Force, the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, the Los Angeles Police Department and the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services.

(©2014 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Wire services contributed to this report.)

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