VANCOUVER—A Vancouver couple who’ve spent the last few weeks cleaning out Costco store shelves of Lysol cleaning products and reselling them at higher prices on Amazon have had their account suspended, the online retail giant said Friday.

“I can confirm their account was blocked for violating our policy around inflating prices,” Amazon spokesperson Andrew Gouveia said in an email Friday.

As the Star reported on Thursday, Manny Ranga and Violeta Perez were observed this week outside a Costco store near downtown Vancouver loading the back of their Ford F-150 truck with stacks of Lysol disinfecting wipes.

Ranga said that a six-pack of wipes, which might sell for $20 at Costco, could fetch four times that online, representing a “big opportunity.” He said the couple had spent about $70,000 on Lysol wipes and liquid cleaners over the past few weeks and made more than $100,000 in sales to individuals and businesses.

Reached by phone Friday, Ranga said he objected to the way he and his wife were portrayed in the story and that the fallout was potentially jeopardizing their livelihoods.

Ranga previously said he and his wife work as home developers and business had slowed considerably recently due to fears surrounding COVID-19.

“I’ve got to pay the bills,” he said.

In a statement earlier in the week Amazon said there was “no place for price gouging,” on the platform.

“We are disappointed that bad actors are attempting to artificially raise prices on basic need products during a global health crisis and, in line with our long-standing policy, have recently blocked or removed hundreds of thousands of offers,” read the earlier statement. “We continue to actively monitor our store and remove offers that violate our policies.”

B.C. Premier John Horgan told reporters during a press briefing Friday that he was “profoundly disappointed” in people who hoard items in order to resell them online.

“I think that’s just offensive. Most people would bristle at that.”

Costco has not responded to repeated requests for comment.

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