$10 toilet paper? Coronavirus gouging complaints surge in US

(AP) — Across a country where shelves are empty and patience thin, authorities are receiving a surge of reports about people trying to cash in on the coronavirus crisis with outrageous prices, phony cures and other scams.

An Associated Press survey of attorneys generals in all 50 states found the number of complaints had already exceeded 5,000. One store advertised hand sanitizer at $60 a bottle.

Chain stores were accused of selling $26 thermometers and face masks at $39.95 a pair, while a convenience store offered toilet paper at $10 a roll next to a sign reading, “This is not a joke.”