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The area used for livestreaming and processing orders for perfumes and other products. (Photo: dms)  

On the evening of October 3, the General Department of Market Management announced that its E-Commerce Task Force had seized a massive stockpile of over 10,000 bottles of perfume with unclear origins, suspected of being smuggled, at Eco Green apartment complex in Thanh Tri district, Hanoi.

The perfumes were sold through livestreams by popular TikToker Phan Thuy Tien, who has over 4 million followers on TikTok.

The large-scale operation took place on the first floor of the CT3 building, where a wide area was dedicated to livestreaming, order processing, and packing. The site is owned by Zenpali Group, whose CEO, identified as C.V.T, managed the business.

Early on October 3, the task force arrived at the location, which was found to be meticulously organized. It featured separate zones for livestreams, order processing, fake view boosting, packaging, and warehousing. The entire operation spanned an area of approximately 1,000 square meters.

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Market management authorities inspecting the seized goods suspected of smuggling. (Photo: dms)

At the packaging area, inspectors found two large sacks containing hundreds of fully packed perfume orders from the previous livestream session, ready for shipment to destinations across Vietnam, including Quang Ninh, Tay Ninh, Ho Chi Minh City, Da Nang, and Dong Nai.

Each order was priced between several tens of thousands to several hundred thousand VND.

Authorities uncovered dozens of stacked cartons containing more than 10,000 bottles of perfume from various brands, including True Love, First Love, Mon Paris, Maiden, and Karri. The perfumes were primarily sold through livestreams on platforms like TikTok and Facebook under the account “Phan Thuy Tien,” which boasts over 4 million followers.

The perfumes lacked any information regarding their origin, with foreign labels but no Vietnamese sub-labels, as required by law. Barcode numbers starting with "697" indicated potential smuggling.

When questioned, representatives from Zenpali Group failed to provide invoices or documents proving the legal origin of the seized perfumes. The case is currently under further investigation by the authorities.

Hanh Nguyen