News Coverage
The Partnership for Safe Medicines has been publishing information about the counterfeit drug problem around the world for more than a decade. With experts leading the organization and a committed and passionate set of writers and editors, our content is more in-depth than many other sources, which simply copy links to the news from other websites.
Newly released court documents show the role that Steven Barros Pinto played in an international drug ring that made and sold fake fentanyl pills across the United States, including in North Dakota, Oregon, North Carolina, Florida, Colorado, Maryland, Rhode Island, New Jersey, and Georgia. The DOJ believes that the counterfeit pills made by this ring with fentanyl and other illegal ingredients caused multiple deaths or serious injuries in North Carolina, New Jersey, and Oregon…
The U.S. Department of Justice announced that Kelly Luanne Schaible pleaded guilty in federal court to one count of wire fraud and one count of introduction of misbranded medical devices into interstate commerce. Schaible operated numerous websites that sold $2.3 million in non FDA-approved and misbranded Botox and Juvederm…
In a first case of its kind, the U.S. Department of Justice indicted two people from New Jersey for operating multiple fake online pharmacies that shipped some customers counterfeit pills made with fentanyl. The pills that Evelin Bracy and Jorge Rodriguez Lopez sold killed one of their customers in Boise, Idaho…
The U.S. Department of Justice announced indictments against a New Jersey mother and son for their roles in a drug trafficking conspiracy. Candace and Tyler Gottlieb both sold counterfeit pain pills that contained both fentanyl and heroin to a confidential human source…
Washington (July 19, 2018) – Shabbir Imber Safdar, executive director of the Partnership for Safe Medicines, released the following statement regarding today’s announcement by the Department of Health and Human Services to create a drug importation working group at FDA: “We are deeply concerned about today’s announcement, particularly given the deaths of Americans in at…
The U.S. Department of Justice announced another guilty plea from the second co-owner of a dietary supplement company based out of Corpus Christi, Texas. Vanessa Gonzales admitted to purchasing pills produced in China that contained undeclared or banned pharmaceutical ingredients…
For the last 15 years, the FDA and HHS have opposed drug importation for safety reasons, but there is another question that is often overlooked: If a pharmacy inadvertently distributes a counterfeit drug it legally purchased from a foreign wholesaler, can the pharmacist be held liable? A 2004 lawsuit, Fagan v. AmerisourceBergen Co, raises disquieting questions.
The U.S. DOJ announced that Nathan Ott of Chambersburg, PA received a 210-month prison sentence. Ott pleaded guilty to purchasing fentanyl by the kilogram online and using it to manufacture counterfeit pills which he and his six co-defendants then sold online and around town…
Kelly Gant is a young woman in Missouri overcoming an addiction to what she thought was Xanax. After being hospitalized for an overdose, she was shocked to learn that she did not overdose on alprazolam, but on fentanyl. It was then that she began to learn more about the bags filled with hundreds of pills that her dealer sold to high school students…
Looking to lower your prescription drug costs? How do you make sure you are not purchasing counterfeit drugs? Learn the signs of a bad online pharmacy and how you can stay safe and get the best price on legitimate FDA-approved medicine…
The U.S. Department of Justice announced an indictment against Kamil Golebioswki. The Connecticut man has various charges against him all stemming from his alleged illegal sale of counterfeit drugs. Golebioswki is believed to have sold the fake Xanax pill that was a contributing cause to a 29-year-old man’s death…
A mother in Indiana recently spoke about the pain of losing her 24-year-old daughter to a counterfeit oxycodone pill that was made with carfentanil. She is warning others about the dangers of fake prescription pills because, “I’m trying one person at a time. I couldn’t save mine, but I can try to help save the next one”…
The U.S. Department of Justice announced that Florida doctor Johnny C. Benjamin, Jr. received a life sentence after being convicted on five counts by a jury in April. Benjamin manufactured counterfeit pain pills, one of which killed Maggie Crowley…
This editorial by Dr. Warren Willey was published in Idaho State Journal on July 7, 2018. Dr. Willey is an osteopathic physician who lives and works in Pocatello, Idaho. Dr. Willey says counterfeit drugs are becoming more commonplace and that people need to only purchase their medications from within the U.S.’s secure drug supply chain…
A doctor in Oregon, Brenda Roberts, pleaded guilty in federal court to purchasing non FDA-approved anti-wrinkle cosmetic injectables and using them on her clients. An affidavit in the case also states that she operated a rogue online pharmacy that distributed controlled substances to customers throughout the United States…
The U.S. DEA held a first-of-its-kind training session in Tampa, Florida to teach local law enforcement officers the proper techniques and steps to safely process a crime scene when fentanyl is present. An officer said that additional training sessions will be held in the future…
The Center for Safe Internet Pharmacies issued a report detailing the ease at which opioids are available for sale online. The research performed by LegitScript shows how shockingly simple it is to buy opioids and substances like fentanyl on the Internet…
In Washington state, law enforcement agencies are finding counterfeit pills made with fentanyl all around the state. In Tri-Cities, the DEA raided several properties after concerns about the increase of fake fentanyl pills being sold on the street. Over in Seattle, it is a battle just to figure out what all these counterfeit pills are made with. Increasingly, it is heroin and fentanyl…
Rene Soriano of Brownsville, Texas entered a plea of not guilty in federal court to charges that he imported and sold counterfeit drugs online via websites like Facebook and Craigslist since 2013…
A federal indictment unsealed against a Maryland man who authorities allege manufactured and sold counterfeit Xanax pills online dating back until at least November 2013. On top of prison time, the U.S. DOJ asked Ryan Farace to be required to forfeit multiple properties and tens of millions of dollars…
Police arrested David Worth Steele and Lisa Johnson Wolford in Mt. Airy, North Carolina after after a police search of their home turned up an array of drugs, including 900 suspected counterfeit Roxicodone pills…
A major drug ring that operated in both North and South Carolina has been busted. 17 homes were searched, 14 people indicted and 11 are already in custody. Police suspect that the raid spooked someone because they dumped 7,000 fentanyl pills on a street…
Canada Drugs isn’t the only online pharmacy that puts patients’ lives in serious jeopardy. The National Association of Boards of Pharmacy recently examined more than 11,000 online pharmacies and found that 96 percent were operating illegally.
LIKE ALL drug scourges, the fentanyl epidemic that claims so many lives every day is a matter of supply and demand. The demand, alas, is made in America. The supply, by contrast, is overwhelmingly imported, with a key source being China, where a poorly regulated cottage industry makes the stuff, takes orders over the Internet and ships it via international mail to the United States, Canada and Mexico.
Today, the U.S. House of Representatives came together across party lines to pass the Synthetics Trafficking and Overdose Prevention (STOP) Act, introduced by Representatives Mike Bishop (R-MI) and Bill Pascrell (D-NJ), by a vote of 353-52. The bill now heads to the Senate for debate and passage.
The introduction of fentanyl and the ever-growing list of its analogues has devastated communities across America, but also created a new sort of drug kingpin. This kingpin uses their knowledge of chemistry to make minor changes to the chemical structure of the drugs that they sell in an attempt to stay one step ahead of the law…
Earlier this month, in the midst of an opioid epidemic ravaging the state, Vermont’s legislature voted to legalize buying drugs from Canada, where government-set price controls keep prices artificially low.
The U.S. Department of Justice announced indictments against ten additional defendants for their roles in a major fentanyl trafficking case, bringing the total number of people charged o 32. This conspiracy had participants in China, Canada, and the United States…
Law enforcement agencies throughout Ohio have been finding counterfeit prescription pills that are made with illicit street drugs including fentanyl. They want to remind the public that any drug purchased on the street, including pills that look like real prescription medicines, could kill you…
Three new admissions of guilt in court in the major counterfeit pill case that happened in Utah. Alexandrya Tonge, Sean Gygi, and Katherine Bustin all admitted to their roles in the production and distribution of counterfeit pain pill containing fentanyl and counterfeit alprazolam…
In this editorial, which was published in The Arizona Republic on June 7, 2018, former Pinal County, AZ sheriff Paul Babeu argues that criminal smugglers from Mexico and China are a driving force in the United States’ fentanyl crisis.
In a June 7, 2018 editorial for The Hill, Former FBI deputy assistant director and Pharmaceutical Security Institute President Thomas Kubic argues that current sentences and penalties are not strong enough to deter criminal drug importation: “It boils down to this, if an entity — be it an organization or person — opts to engage in activities involving illegal distribution chains, there should be consequences, often certain, swift, and overwhelmingly punitive.”
The FDA sent nine online networks that operate 53 different websites selling illicit opioids warning letters telling them they must stop illegally marketing to American citizens or face enforcement action…
Partnership for Safe Medicines Announces Creation of Fentanyl Council to Spotlight Impact on U.S. Law Enforcement, Explore Proliferation of Pill Presses
The DOJ recently sentenced Jacob Hubbs of South Dakota to 70-months in federal prison for his role in a conspiracy in which purchased counterfeit pain pills made with fentanyl were distributed in that state and beyond…
Mario Noble, one of the defendants charged as a member of the Utah-based counterfeit fentanyl pill operation allegedly run by Aaron Shamo, has admitted his role in the operation in court and is looking for a plea deal…
The Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office recently concluded an investigation that began in early 2018, ended with the arrest of Octavio Gutierrez-Hernandez and Jorge Bazan, and 8,000 counterfeit fentanyl pills taken off the streets…
In this May 31, 2018 editorial for The Daily Caller, pharmacoeconomic expert Dr. Marv Shepherd explains the concrete reasons why the importation of drugs from other countries as a means to lowering prices in the U.S. is both unsafe and economically unsound.
The city of Los Angeles is continuing its fight against illegal and counterfeit medicines being sold in stores in the area. This investigation brought in over 430,000 illicit doses of fake medicines and saw three lawsuits filed against eight people…
The DOJ announced that Cathine Lavina Sellers of Roswell, Georgia received a three year prison sentence after she pleaded guilty in court earlier this year to selling counterfeit pills that contained fentanyl, furanyl-fentanyl, and U-47700…
The DOJ indicted three residents of Ohio after they were caught with 1,500 counterfeit oxycodone pills that were made with fentanyl. Gerald Bowerman, Emmet Nelson, and Cortney Williams had just returned from allegedly picking up a new batch of fake pills in Kentucky…
Partnership For Safe Medicines Urges Passage of the STOP Act to Increase Inspections for Dangerous Synthetic Opioids Legislation will increase surveillance of primary smuggling route for fentanyl WASHINGTON (May 24, 2018) – The Partnership for Safe Medicines (PSM) today urged passage of the Synthetics Trafficking and Overdose Prevention Act of 2017 (S.372), also known as…
Three recent stories – from Mississippi, Georgia, and Florida – show the counterfeit pain and anti-anxiety pills are still a major danger to residents along the Gulf Coast…
Three news stories recently out of Arizona show that despite the DEA taking over 120,000 counterfeit fentanyl pills off the streets in 2017, police keep finding more and seizures of a precursor chemical needed to produce fentanyl are up…
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Iowa issued a warning to residents about counterfeit pills made with fentanyl being sold on the streets around the state. Shortly after this announcement, the DOJ announced guilty pleas from two Waverly residents charged with selling counterfeit pills made with carfentanil and cyclopropyl fentanyl that they purchased off the Internet…
By approving the wholesale reimportation of U.S. prescription drugs from Canada, the Vermont Legislature passed an illegal measure that will not lower drug prices. Instead, it will subject Vermonters to public health risks and new taxes to defray an inevitable federal lawsuit.
An additional individual has been charged for his role in the Pharma-Master counterfeit fentanyl pill ring allegedly run by Utah-resident Aaron Shamo. Jonathan Luke Paz received four charges in federal court…
A 2017 legal review conducted by Camille Guerra and Dr. Timothy K. Mackey predates the CanadaDrugs prosecution, however it clearly illustrates the challenges faced by courts in effectively prosecuting illicit online pharmacies
The Center for Safe Internet Pharmacies and Partnership for Drug-Free Kids launched MedicineSafe to educate families about medicine safety.
A Westover, Connecticut man is under arrest, and authorities there have uncovered a counterfeit Percocet factory in a barn that was producing enough carfentanil pills to kill half the population of Stamford
Stories of counterfeit pills made with fentanyl keep coming in from across the country. PSM did a quick recap of three stories – one from Arkansas, one from North Carolina, and one from California – that we want to make sure you know about…
A nonprofit group working to protect the world from cyber threats analyzed 120,000 online pharmacy domains over a ten year period. Their data showed multiple reasons that consumers need to be careful when purchasing prescription medications online…
Drug overdose deaths increased 27.9% since 2015, and the CDC notes, “These increases primarily were driven by deaths involving synthetic opioids, for which the rate doubled from 2015 to 2016.” Synthetic opioids like illicit manufactured fentanyl are poisoning Americans in record numbers.
A federal jury found Dr. Johnny C. Benjamin of Vero Beach guilty on five of the seven charges against him, including manufacturing counterfeit pills with fentanyl that caused the death of a young woman in Wellington, Florida…
After spending years smuggling illegal and counterfeit prescription pills into the U.S. and selling them to people in San Diego County, Alejandro Hernandez was sentenced to 30-months in federal prison for his crime…
The state of Ohio has been hard hit by the opioid epidemic. It is one of 43 states in which PSM has documented finding counterfeit fentanyl pills and is also one of 22 states in which someone had died from taking one of these pills. Now, the executive director of the Ohio Pharmacists Association and the Ohio Attorney General have both spoken out about the dangers these fake pills pose to everyone…
In this editorial, which appeared in the Austin American-Statesman on April 27, 2018, Georgia resident Lisa Hicks warns readers about the counterfeit prescription pills that killed her son in 2015:
“One needn’t be an addict to die from an overdose..Joe had a solid job and was studying for a degree in exercise science…One day, he pulled a muscle at the gym. He was in serious pain, so he bought what he thought were prescription painkillers from a friend. Those pills turned out to be counterfeit. And they contained a deadly amount of fentanyl. The next day, my son was gone.”
The DOJ announced that two men were indicted in federal court on drugs charges. Included in the items seized during the execution of the search warrant on November 30, 2017 were dozens of fentanyl pills…
The U.S. Customs and Border Protection seized a total of 1,1,32 pounds of fentanyl at U.S. borders in all of fiscal 2017. In the first half of fiscal year 2018, they have already seized over 1,000 pounds of fentanyl, leaving a DEA agent in San Diego concerned about counterfeit fentanyl pills…
The U.S. DOJ received a permanent injunction against MyNicNaxs, a company based in Deltona, Florida, for the sale and distribution of unapproved and misbranded new drugs. Despite receiving a warning letter in 2013, the company continued to sell dietary supplements that contained undisclosed pharmaceutical ingredients…
The DOJ announced that John and Plabpleung Hayes of New Hampshire received their prison sentences for their roles in a conspiracy that imported and sold over 2 million misbranded prescription pills from India and sold them to customers across the United States…
Choosing generic drugs is the easiest and fastest way for Americans to lower their prescription drug costs without having to risk purchasing your medication from a shady online pharmacy. We did a price comparison to see where losartan, the generic version of Cozaar, is more affordable – in the U.S. or in Canada. At a brick-and-mortar pharmacy in Canada, a 30-day supply would cost $14.31, but we found the same pills at pharmacies in the U.S. for $6.60…
Importing drugs from Canada sounds as if it would solve the issue of high prescription drug costs in the U.S., but that’s just a good soundbite. The truth is that the drugs Americans buy online “from Canada” are not actually Canadian and they have not been inspected by any regulatory authority…
FDA Inspectors working at the U.S.’s nine international mail facilities work hard to keep counterfeit and substandard drugs from being shipped into the country. The FDA is asking Congress to change the rules to make it easier for them to seize and destroy shipments of fake drugs…
The Department of Justice (DOJ) for the Southern District of Ohio has brought money-laundering and fentanyl distribution charges against 12 people in Cincinnati. Additionally, 40 people in San Diego, California have been charged, along with others in Columbus, Ohio, the Eastern District of Kentucky, the District of Kansas and the Eastern District of Washington. Among those charged in California is Jose Lopez-Albarran, who they describe as a known money-laundering agent for the Sinaloa Cartel. The DOJ alleges “he and other members of the Cartel allegedly laundered tens of millions of dollars in narcotics proceeds from the United States to Mexico between 2015 and 2018. Through the investigation in California, law enforcement discovered multiple drug-trafficking cells throughout the United States.”
Arrest of pair in Tennessee brings down a counterfeit pill mill that produced and shipped fake Xanax to customers across the U.S. Authorities found 58,000 fake pills and enough powder to make an additional 200,000 more while searching two properties…
The Partnership for Safe Medicines released the following press release after the official acceptance of the plea deal for Kris Thorkelson and CanadaDrugs.com…
The U.S. DOJ announced that Nikhil Buhecha, a Canadian pharmacist, received a 36-month sentence for owning and operating a sophisticated drug whole operation that sold counterfeit Botox to doctors all across the United States…
On April 10, The Partnership for Safe Medicines sponsored a congressional briefing focused on the illicit fentanyl trade and the widespread impact it is having on communities across the United States. PSM released 43 States and Counting, a update to last September’s report on fentanyl-laced counterfeit pills in the U.S. Click here to watch a video of the event.
A federal jury convicted three people for their roles in a conspiracy to manufacture and sell counterfeit Percocet pills in Murfreesboro, TN. Those pills were linked to one death and 20 poisons…
A new report released April 10, 2018 by The Partnership for Safe Medicines (PSM) illustrates the growing deadly toll that illegally-imported fentanyl is having on communities throughout the U.S. PSM’s analysis confirms reports of counterfeit medicines made with fentanyl in 43 states, with fentanyl-related deaths confirmed in 22 states. The updated findings follow a report released by PSM last September that found a presence of counterfeit fentanyl in 40 states and related deaths in 16 states.
This event is going to be popular – register to secure your seat. Priority will be given to registered congressional staff. Former DEA Agents Who Inspired Netflix Series “Narcos” Join Policymakers to Discuss Latest Threats Posed By Illegally-Imported Fentanyl House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Rep. Greg Walden (R-Oregon), Members of Congress, Law Enforcement Experts, Industry Leaders…
Charges have been filed in a New York City court against six members, including the ringleader, of a major fentanyl smuggling ring. Police say this group brought enough fentanyl into the area to make 10 million fatal doses…
A prescription drug clawback is when the patient pays more than the cost of the drug and that extra money goes into the pockets of an insurance company and pharmacy benefits manager. This is why asking your pharmacist what the cash price would be for your prescription is one of way PSM says consumers may be able to quickly and safely lower their prescription costs…
An East Liverpool man, Justin Buckel, has been sentenced to six-and-a-half-years in prison after pleading guilty to charges related to drug trafficking, including assault on a police officer. In May 2017, Police Officer Chris Green was exposed to fentanyl in East Liverpool , Ohio after searching Buckel’s care after a traffic stop. Bucknel’s arrest was part of a larger Ohio fentanyl bust, in which over 100 people were arrested.
According to their indictment, Sanchez “Chez” Lackland and Jermol “Yak” Mixon face counts of fentanyl importation and distribution, as well as weapons charges. Their indictment also identifies the fentanyl analogue as methoxyacetyl fentanyl, and notes that the accused allegedly made repeated purchases of the drug from Chinese sources.
The U.S. Department of Justice announced that a Massachusetts couple who were part of a counterfeit steroid ring received their sentences. Tyler Bauman will spend 10 years in prison and Kathryn Green will spend one year and one day…
The U.S. Department of Justice announced that 44-year-old Mumbai Ramesh Buchirajam Akkela will spend 33 months in jail for shipping thousands of misbranded pills to customers around the U.S. without requiring a valid prescription…
The two confidential informants in the case against a Vero Beach doctor who was manufacturing counterfeit oxycodone pills have been named and charged in court. Kevan Slater and Zachary Stewart each face multiple counts in recently released superseding indictment…
Information provided by the Montgomery County RANGE Task Force in Ohio tipped off postal inspectors to a suspect thought to be purchasing narcotics online. One seized package heading to that person contained 1,500 counterfeit oxycodone pills made with fentanyl…
Kris Thorkelson, the CEO of CanadaDrugs.com, has a pending plea deal to settle all charges against him. The Partnership for Safe Medicines is gravely concerned that this deal does not do enough to act as a deterrent either to Thorkelson himself or to anyone else who may be contemplating such a scheme…
The U.S. Department of Justice announced a 28-count indictment against four people in Puerto Rico for allegedly selling counterfeit and misbranded drugs on various online marketplaces for years…
The FDA lays out exactly what kind of claims fraudulent flu treatments make. They also point out that there are no FDA-approved over-the-counter (OTC) flu treatments available, though there are OTC treatments that can help reduce fever or muscle aches.
A man in California sold counterfeit pills containing fentanyl to the Marine corporal who died after taking them. Kyle Shephard has been charged with murder. A complaint filed in the court says he sold approximately 2,000 of the counterfeit pills…
New data released by the CDC shows that on average there was a 30% increase in opioid-related overdose emergency room visits across the country. The Midwest was hit particularly hard with visits increasing there by 70%…
Kyle James Hebert, a horse veterinarian from Lake Charles, Louisiana has been sentenced to 15 months in prison for illegally treating racehorses with a banned and misbranded performance enhancing drug.
Police in Northfield, Minnesota warn of counterfeit oxycodone pills made with carfentanil in their city. These pills already caused at least three non-fatal poisonings…
Ohio resident Alexander Henize faces 16 counts after a search of the home he shared with his girlfriend and their 2-year-old daughter turned up an industrial pill press and 11 pounds of fentanyl…
FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb recently toured the International Mail Facility at JFK Airport with members of Congress so they could see firsthand what the FDA is attempting to sort through to keep dangerous opioids out of the country and why they need a staffing increase…
The Mexican Federal Police recently stopped a vehicle enroute to California carrying over 100 pounds of fentanyl.
Other countries, even advanced countries like Canada, don’t provide the same level of protection. From April 2016 to March 2017, Canadian agents discovered more than 5,500 packages of counterfeit drugs in their midst. Loosening importation restrictions would expose American patients to potentially deadly counterfeit pills.
A Phoenix area man has been sentenced to 3 years in prison for transporting thousands of fentanyl-laced pills into Arizona.
Netflix DEA NARCOS agents Javier Pena (DEA Special Agent (Ret.) and Steve Murphy (DEA Special Agent (Ret.) describe the growing nexus between illicit drug traffickers and counterfeit medicines.
Short updates on two major fentanyl counterfeit pill ring cases. One case in Texas looks to have one of the fourteen defendants taking a plea while the second case in Utah sees a jury trial date set for Aaron Shamo, the alleged drug ring leader that shipped counterfeit pills containing fentanyl all across the U.S…
Most people in the U.S. live in states where their pharmacists are barred from letting them know that they could save money by paying cash instead of their insurance’s co-payment. Federal and state legislators are looking to change that…
U.S. Department of Justice announced two new cases. One is against a PA couple for manufacturing and selling counterfeit prescription pills made with heroin. The second case is against an OH couple charged with running a drug ring that imported and sold fentanyl and carfentanil in the Akron area…
Massachusetts man sentenced to two years in prison for his role in a scheme to import and distribute misbranded and counterfeit drugs. Harry Aliengena acted as a middleman, received shipments of fake drugs, and sent them onto customer across the U.S…
Articles about counterfeit Xanax are coming in from all across the United States. PSM has taken a quick look at four recent stories out of North Carolina, Massachusetts, Texas, and California…
The trio of residents from Chipley, Florida that had plead guilty to counterfeit drug and illicit steroid charges have been sentenced, the Department of Justice (DOJ) reports.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation issued a public safety alert on February 11, 2018 about the high volume of counterfeit pills made with fentanyl and other illicit opioids that have been found in Metro Atlanta. Since January 2015, there have been 450 reports of counterfeit pills. The most commonly counterfeited pills were Xanax and oxycodone that contained substances such as fentanyl, furanyl fentanyl, and U-47700.