Press release: Peppino Fiori: repeat offender subject to confiscation order

In August 2018 Fiori was sentenced to 12 months immediate custody for possession with intent to supply fake Viagra. This sentence came just two years after a conviction for the same offence – in 2016 he had been sentenced to 12 months custody.

Fiori has been given 3 months to pay the confiscation order and will be sentenced to 18 months custody if he should default.

Approximately 60,640 doses of unlicensed medicine were seized, following investigation by the Medicine and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). This included 2,200 doses of generic Tramadol, a powerful class C drug. It is thought that Fiori’s hoard was worth more than £60,000.

Tariq Sarwar, MHRA’s Head of Operation, said:

This confiscation follows a successful investigation by our Financial Investigation Team.

People who sell medicines illegally online are only interested in one thing – your money, not your health.

We will continue to track down and bring to justice those who are willing to put others’ health in jeopardy and pursue them to take away their ill-gotten gains.

If you need advice or treatment for a condition, visit your GP. Make sure you obtain medical products from legitimate high street outlets or online retailers displaying the distance selling logo.

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.