Agents seize hundreds of thousands of illegal vapes smuggled from China
in nationwide crackdown
[September 11, 2025]
By ALANNA DURKIN RICHER
BENSENVILLE, Ill. (AP) — Federal agents seized hundreds of thousands of
illegal vaping products in raids across the country on Wednesday as the
Trump administration moved to crack down on devices that are regularly
used by teens in the U.S. after being smuggled in from China.
Attorney General Pam Bondi, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert
F. Kennedy Jr. and other top federal officials traveled to Illinois to
tout the seizures, which included more than 600,000 illegal products
taken from a distributor outside of Chicago, officials said. They stood
outside the warehouse flanked by colorful boxes of vapes in fruity
flavors that officials say are being illegally sold at stores
nationwide.
“They’re targeting children, young adults, college students and even
members of our military,” Bondi said.
It’s the latest attempt by law enforcement to staunch the flow of
unauthorized vapes that have flooded into the U.S. in kid-friendly
flavors, often from China. Their influx has forced the FDA to try to
eliminate thousands of illegal products sold by under-the-radar
importers and distributors.
Agents with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the
Food and Drug Administration and the U.S. Marshals Service also seized
illegal products from distributors and retailers in North Carolina,
Arizona, New Jersey, Georgia and Florida, federal officials said.
The Justice Department also filed civil actions Wednesday seeking to
halt illegal business practices happening at five distributors and five
retailers, officials said. That follows undercover buys of illegal
products that ATF agents carried out at distributors across the country
last month, according to authorities.
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Attorney General Pam Bondi speaks during a human smuggling news
conference Thursday Sept. 4, 2025, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris
O'Meara)
Bondi said the Justice Department would also not rule out bringing
criminal charges, if warranted.
“Make no mistake. Chinese companies are making billions of dollars
off of these products,” Bondi said. “They’re peddling them into our
country.”
Vaping among teens skyrocketed in 2019, when more than a quarter
reported using vapes daily. But use has declined in recent years,
with fewer adolescents reported vaping in 2024 than at any point in
the last decade. Officials attributed that drop in part to more
aggressive enforcement against retailers and manufacturers.
The Vapor Technology Association blasted the FDA and federal
officials, arguing the actions threaten to bankrupt thousands of
small businesses, cost tens of thousands of jobs, and erase billions
in tax revenue. The group’s executive director, Tony Abboud, called
the seizures “an assault on American workers, small businesses, and
the tax base” and urged regulators to reverse course.
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Associated Press journalists Amanda Seitz and Matthew Perrone in
Washington contributed to this report.
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