2012 Incidents
Fake Doctor Pleads Guilty to Practicing Without a License & Administering Unapproved Drugs in San Diego
View larger map The Federal Bureau of Investigation arrested Kathleen Ann Helms, also known as Catherine Bright-Helms, age 57, of Encinitas, CA in August, 2012. She was charged with practicing medicine without a license, “which resulted in the infliction of great bodily injury and grand theft,” announced the FBI. She operated an unlicensed clinic called…
[...]New Zealand Citizen Pleads Guilty in US Counterfeit Drug Case
View larger map Robin Han, a citizen of New Zealand, faces up to 30 years in prison and possible $6 million fine after his guilty plea on counterfeit drug charges. US attorneys from the Central District of California prosecuted Han on charges he conducted a large scale counterfeit drug trafficking business in the United States.…
[...]Angola Customs Agents Find Vast Store of Fake Malaria Drugs in China Shipment
In June of 2012, Angola Customs agents conducting a routine search of cargo shipped from China, they found 1.4 million packets of counterfeit Coartem, a Malaria medication produced by Novartis. The resulting seizure of fake drugs would have, if genuine, been enough to treat over half of Angola’s annual Malaria patients. Who: Angola Customs Service.…
[...]MHRA Seizes £14 Million in Assets from Convicted UK Drug Counterfeiter
The United Kingdom’s Medicine & Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has seized £14.4 million in assets from convicted counterfeit medicine dealer, Simon Martin Hickman. Hickman was sentenced to two years imprisonment in June 2009 following his conviction for both selling and supplying fake and unlicensed drugs,and money laundering. After an investigation of his assets, the…
[...]Two Israeli Citizens Plead Guilty to Importing Counterfeit Drugs to US
View larger map Two Israeli citizens, Benny Carmi and Moshe Dahan, pleaded guilty to smuggling counterfeit and misbranded drugs in the US. The Food and Drug Administration Office of Criminal Investigations (OCI) explained that “both men operated an Internet business in Israel that used multiple websites, including ‘allpillsrx.com,’ ‘newpharm.net,’ and others to illegally sell large…
[...]Chinese National Flees Justice After Counterfeit Drug Importation Conviction
View larger map Chinese national En Wang 32, has fled justice on his counterfeit drug conviction. Once he had been convicted of conspiring to traffic fake medications, Wang, while free on bond, fled the United States just prior to his sentencing. Wang was subsequently sentenced in absentia to 33 months in federal prison without parole…
[...]New York Pharmacists Indicted for Purchasing Black Market HIV Drugs for Resale
View larger map Pharmacists in Brooklyn and Suffolk County who worked for MOMs specialty HIV Medication Pharmacy have been charged with allegedly re-selling HIV and AIDS medications to patients that had been illegally obtained on the black market. The medications were mislabeled and potentially mishandled and expired. MOMs and their parent company Allion Healthcare then…
[...]2nd Instance of Counterfeit Cancer Treatment Drug Found in United States: April 3, 2012
View larger map A second instance of a counterfeit version of the cancer therapy drug Avastin, labeled Altuzan (as it is labeled in Turkey) has been found in the United States, announced the FDA. Vials of the medication were tested at FDA labs and found not to contain the active ingredients, according to the FDA.…
[...]San Diego Pharmacist Pleads Guilty in Misbranded Cancer Drug Scam
A San Diego Pharmacist, Maher Idriss, owner of Oberlin Medical Supply, has pleaded guilty to playing an integral part in a complex counterfeit cancer drug scheme that bought cancer medications in bulk form from Turkey, India, and Pakistan. The misbranded oncology drugs were then repackaged and sold as genuine, FDA-approved medications. Idriss repackaged the drugs…
[...]La Jolla Businessman, James R. Newcomb, Pleads Guilty to Counterfeit Drug Importation Charges
View larger map In an FDA report unsealed February 16th, La Jolla CA businessman, James R. Newcomb has pled guilty on charges of conspiracy to cause the introduction of adulterated prescription drugs into interstate commerce. Newcomb’s business, Ban Dune Marketing Inc (BDMI) of La Jolla, CA. has been named as a source of the counterfeit…
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