Peddler of fake Viagra gets 32 months

Any man who bought Viagra and Cialis from Niaja Kane and hoped for solid results would have come up a little short.

Kane, 24, of Philadelphia, was sentenced yesterday to 32 months in federal prison for trafficking in fake Viagra, Cialis and Percocet pills.

Viagra and Cialis are prescription drugs that treat male erectile dysfunction and Percocet is a prescription painkiller.

Kane, dressed in a white blouse and olive plaid pants, was told to surrender to the Bureau of Prisons on April 23.

U.S. District Judge Timothy J. Savage could have given her a stiffer sentence. Federal guidelines call for a penalty of 46-57 months.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Judy Smith declined comment after sentencing.

Mark Hauser, Kane's attorney, said the sentence was "fair" and reflected the fact that Kane's father had been shot dead when she was just 2 and that she did not have a prior criminal record.

Kane pleaded guilty after being charged in September with trafficking in counterfeit drugs, holding counterfeit drugs for sale and possessing with intent to distribute a controlled substance, albeit fake.

The feds alleged she sent samples and pictures of the real drugs to a counterfeit drug manufacturer in China after ordering the phony pills over the Internet.

Kane used the screen name "moreandmoreNiaja" to facilitate the Internet purchases. The bogus drugs were then shipped from China to Kane in Philadelphia.

Federal agents searched Kane's home in February and found more than 8,900 bogus Percocet tablets, 2,000 fake Viagra tablets and approximately 1,200 fake Cialis tablets. The pills had a street value of between $4 and $11 each, Smith told the court.

"None of the drugs were what they purported to be," she said. That posed a potential health risk for consumers, she said, "particularly if people are expecting a certain reaction and they're not getting it."

The feds said the fake pills had a different chemical composition than the legitimate pills.

Kane told Savage she earned about $2,500 to $5,000 a month for six months selling drugs before she was indicted.

Agents also found 1,250 grams of marijuana and more than $35,000 in cash when they searched Kane's home.

Kane, who has battled drug and alcohol abuse, sought leniency, telling Savage at one point: "I'm a changed person. I'm going to go to school. I've got a job. I'm legitimate." *