California launches criminal Juul probe: report
E-cigarette maker Juul, already under fire from the U.S. government, is facing more problems.
Federal prosecutors in California have reportedly launched a criminal probe into the company which makes flavored vaping products, according to a report by The Wall Street Journal.
Juul declined to comment to FOX Business on the report.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MO | ALTRIA GROUP INC. | 56.45 | +0.47 | +0.84% |
Philip Morris parent Altria, which holds a 35 percent stake in Juul, has seen its investment take a hit. Shares of the tobacco maker have lost 17 percent this year.
Juul has been under fire from various agencies over whether its products are tied to lung illness.
North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein is clamping down on what he describes as a vaping “epidemic among high schoolers and middle schoolers” across the country, filing suit against eight different e-cigarette companies.
His office already sued Juul, the nation’s leading e-cigarette company. Vape liquid often includes nicotine.
“I sued Juul, which is the 800-pound gorilla of this industry, earlier this year,” he told FOX Business earlier this month. “They're responsible for 75 to 80 percent of the teen vaping market.”
Additionally, the FDA is asking the public to keep submitting incidents that may show the link between the use of e-cigarettes and seizures.
The Federal Drug Administration said the scientific investigation was a response to initial requests from the public earlier this year. At this time, the administration said they cannot definitively determine if e-cigarettes directly cause seizures and other neurological events.
The FDA began receiving reports of seizures linked to e-cigarettes like JUUL and tobacco products in 2010. The seizures may not have been solely to blame, as some of the seizures occurred in those who were vaping for the first time and others were using other drugs at the time or may have had an underlying medical condition.