A woman has been sentenced today following a long running investigation into the sale of counterfeit and unlicensed drugs which convicted 12 individuals in 2015. The defendant received a prison sentence of 2 years and 3 months.
The medicines, which were sold predominantly over the internet, have an estimated value of £11 million with a suggested annual turnover in excess of £3 million.
She facilitated payments for the purchase of unlicensed erectile dysfunction medicines and claims that she received 10% of the ‘earnings’ laundered through her account but was unaware that the money was for the unlicensed medicine, Kamagra.
Samples of the products were found to contain potent, active medicinal ingredients with potential serious side effects and are classified as prescription only. Supply without medical supervision is dangerous as the contents of unlicensed medicines are unknown and untested.
Alastair Jeffrey, MHRA Head of Enforcement said:
Selling medicines outside of the regulated supply chain is a serious criminal offence. If you buy medicines online, you are potentially trusting a criminal to look after your health”.
Always seek professional help and visit your GP if you are ill. These criminals are motivated by greed and have no concern about your welfare.
MHRA is currently running the #FakeMeds campaign to warn people against buying potentially dangerous or useless unlicensed medicines sold by illegal online suppliers.
Visit www.gov.uk/fakemeds for tips on buying medicines safely online and how to avoid unscrupulous sites.
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