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Sex shop told 'stop sending butt plugs to Navy' in official letter from Pentagon

The US Department of War sent a Toronto sex shop a formal letter ordering them to stop shipping butt plugs to Bahrain after a package was intercepted

[Canadian sex shop owner Grace Bennett received a stern letter from the US Department of War]

Canadian sex shop owner Grace Bennett received a stern letter from the US Department of War(Image: Grace Bennett/Instagram )

A Canadian sex shop boss was taken aback after the US Department of War sent a stern letter ordering her to stop shipping butt plugs to the Middle East.

Grace Bennett, the co-founder of Toronto-based adult store Bonjibon, was left surprised when she received some official-looking mail directly from the Pentagon.

The high-level "cease and desist" from the military concerned a stray parcel of bedroom toys. The hilarious saga started after a mystery customer's order was intercepted by US Naval Forces Central Command in Bahrain.

The Kingdom has strict rules against "pornographic devices," and it seems officials weren't in the mood for any backdoor diplomacy.

[Grace Bennett received a stern letter after sending a butt plug to a customer]

Grace Bennett received a stern letter after sending a butt plug to a customer(Image: Lovehoney)

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The formal letter, sent by the US Department of War last summer, didn't leave much to the imagination. It laid out the law in no uncertain terms, telling the shop to effectively "stop sending butt plugs to Bahrain."

The letter stated: "During security screening by Bahrain Customs, pornographic materials and or devices were identified in a package addressed to you.

"This letter is to notify you that your parcel was returned to the sender. Please notify the sender that pornographic materials or devices are not allowed into the Kingdom of Bahrain."

Speaking to CTV News Toronto, a baffled Grace explained that the shop doesn't even ship to Bahrain. She suspects a member of the military had the adult items forwarded from another military base before they were rumbled by security.

[Grace Bennett proudly framed the letter from the US Department of War]

Grace Bennett proudly framed the letter from the US Department of War(Image: Grace Bennett/Instagram )

Grace said: "We didn't even know it (the product) was going to Bahrain until it came back to us months later and it just kind of unravelled this wholehilarious moment.

"We got a huge kick out of it. I mean, we don't judge, we want everyone to order whatever they want and we want everyone to feel confident and start shopping for whatever they want.

"But, there is a juxtaposition of a military person in a foreign country ordering butt plugs and having no understanding that those items are illegal in the country that they're in."

She added: "There's many layers of hilarity to this that we can all just poke fun (at) and the situation is quite funny, while at the same time, I'm sad that they didn't get their order."

It's not the first time US officials have tried to make life difficult for business owners like Grace.

Last year, Donald Trump's administration faced accusations of launching an assault on masturbation as US politicians attempted to alter legislation making it more difficult to purchase sex toys.

Republican Senator Angela Paxton, wife of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, put forward legislation to penalise online retailers selling an "obscene device" to individuals without age verification.

An obscene device is outlined in the state's penal code as "a device including a dildo or artificial vagina, designed or marketed as useful primarily for the stimulation of human genital organs".

The proposed legislation would mandate online sex toy retailers to gather photo identification directly from prospective buyers and use a third-party service to confirm the customer's age.

They could alternatively rely solely on payment methods restricted to those aged 18, such as credit cards, or risk up to a year behind bars and a $4,000 fine.

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