Over 45,000 kg of adulterated rice in Burkina Faso; origin fraud and counterfeiting

Burkina Faso's anti-fraud authorities announced on February 15, 2024 that they had disbanded the network of fraudsters who were counterfeiting rice. The scam involved packing local rice in adulterated bags labeled "imported rice" in order to raise its price and sell it for additional profit. The packages bore the counterfeit brand "Lizo" from Myanmar (Burma), while the original brand was "Liza". Seizure of over 45 tons of rice Investigation revealed that in addition to local rice, fraudsters were also repackaging rice intended for school canteens, which cannot be sold. This product is obtained at low cost thanks to the efforts of the Government. The authorities detained a truck carrying 321 bags of 50 kg of rice labeled with the counterfeit brand "Lizo" and 39 bags of rice intended for the school canteen. Further investigation revealed a warehouse containing 441 bags of 50 kg of rice intended for school canteens, 65 bags of 100 kg of local rice and 901 empty bags of the ...