ISIS-Themed Fake Lego Sets Sold to Malaysian and Australian Kids
A Chinese toy producer has been found selling a knock-off set of Lego blocks that features Islamic State (ISIS) terrorists. The off-brand "Falcon Commandos" toy set depicts the jihadis dressed in black battling counter-terror police uniform complete with beheading figurines armed with chainsaws.
The first reported sale of the counterfeit Lego set was in Malaysia wherein a mother reported seeing the toy being sold at a store in Taiping, North Kuala Lumpur and reported the matter to the police and Islamic council. Mahnun Mat Isa said her son showed her the toy he bought for about $1.50.
Isa's curiosity was piqued when she read the words "Allah" and "Muhammad" displayed on the banner held by the terrorist character whose face was covered by a head cloth. "I ask the authorities to not freely allow the entry of toys that touch on religious sensitivities in this country," the 40-year-old teacher said.
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The serial number on the box has been traced back to a manufacturer in China. It was also learned that the toys were being sold on at least three overseas websites including one in Australia. A print advertising material on one of the websites shows eight mini-figures or the small individual toys in each set.
One shows a masked figure tossing a stick of dynamite while another one is armed with a chainsaw and a bloodied head can be seen at its feet. The set also includes weapons including dynamite sticks bundled together with a timer and a catapult capable of launching incendiary devices. Parents have complained that the toy glorified terrorism.
This is not the first time that products of Lego, the Danish company founded in 1949, were copied using controversial characters. In 2008, BrickArms based in Richmond, Washington released an Osama bin Laden figure armed with an AK-47 Armalite rifle and a belt of grenades.
