Fake condom warning for Birmingham lovers

Jul 5 2009 by Jonny Greatrex, Sunday Mercury

FAKING IT!

LOVERS have been warned to take care after a batch of fake condoms was uncovered at a Birmingham store.

The phoney prophylactics were found by Trading Standards officers when they raided the Buywise 24-hour store on Kings Heath High Street following a tip-off from the Sunday Mercury.

More than 200 packs of Durex’s popular Fetherlite brand were seized and an investigation has been launched to trace the source.

Civil servant Oliver French, 23, who lives round the corner from the shop, bought a packet of the dodgy contraceptives.

“At first I didn’t notice anything wrong with them,” the fine art graduate told the Sunday Mercury. “But it’s not the sort of thing you check in the heat of the moment, is it?

“When I tried to get the thing on I couldn’t believe how small it was, and it had a different smell. I realised something was not right and decided to investigate. When we looked at the packaging it was different to the ones I had got from Boots and the leaflet had spelling mistakes on it.