News
Cosmetic Injectable Treatments Now Used to Treat Dozens of Ailments so Fakes Poses A Danger to More U. S. Patients
In 2016 alone, over 1,400 practitioners were warned by the FDA that their supplier was selling unapproved so-called “Botox.” With more than 2,400 professionals warned in the past 5 years, the expansion of use for this medication provides new markets for counterfeiters selling fake and misbranded drugs. Botulinum neurotoxin, or Botox as it is known,…
[...]Letter to the US Congress regarding drug “importation” proposals
January 5, 2017 Dear Senators and Representatives, In December of 2015 we released the attached letter warning Congress of the dangers to American patients from counterfeit drugs brought into America through “importation” proposals. As you consider the budget this year, we wanted to bring to your attention several recent tragic events that show the negative…
[...]2 Florida Medical Executives Indicted for Selling Misbranded Gastric Banding Kits
Defendants allegedly purchased expired or close-to-expired gastric lap-band surgery kits on the Internet, disguised them as new, and then re-sold them to local physicians. Florida residents Peter Kakfa and Gregory Grimm are being accused of running an expired/misbranded gastric bypass banding system scam via their employer Apollo Endosurgery, the Department of Justice (DOJ) reports. According…
[...]Puerto Rico Woman Arrested for Posing as Nurse, Injecting Clients with Industrial Grade Silicone
Authorities in San Juan are making a public appeal to find more victims of “Rosa from Venezuela.” A federal court in San Juan, Puerto Rico has brought charges of injecting adulterated products into at least 2 different women against Rosa Betancourt-Farfán, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) reports. Betancourt-Farfán is alleged to have posed as…
[...]Pakistani Fake Internet Pharmacy Owners Sentenced in Federal Court
Pair that were arrested in London in October 2012 for operating a fake online pharmacy that sold to U.S. consumers plead guilty and are sentenced. Pakistani fake online pharmacy entrepreneurs Sheikh Waseem Ul Haq and Tahir Saeed have been sentenced to time served after pleading guilty to 48 counts, including “conspiracy to import Schedule II,…
[...]Iowa Oncologist Pays $176,460 Fine in Illegally Imported Cancer Drugs Case
Dr. Magdy Elsawy has admitted to no wrongdoing in his settlement, however it was originally alleged he provided non-FDA approved cancer medications to his patients, defrauded Medicare, and provided treatments to patients that were more complex than needed or entirely medically unneeded. North Iowa Today is reporting that the owner and lead physician at Hematology…
[...]Florida Oncologist Convicted for Buying Misbranded Cancer Drugs from Supplier of Fake Avastin
Dr. Diana Anda Norbergs was convicted by a Federal Grand Jury on 45 counts related to her multi-year practice of treating her oncology patients with imported, non-FDA approved cancer medications, and then billing Medicare, public, and private insurers for the full cost of the genuine treatments. The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) is reporting that…
[...]Real Housewives Botox Nurse Pleads Guilty to Buying Misbranded Botox from Fake Online Pharmacy in Canada
California nurse who provided Botox treatments to the stars of Real Housewives of Orange County has pleaded guilty to charges she treated her patients with non-FDA approved Botox. Her original supplier of the misbranded Botox was SB Medical, an illicit Canadian medication importer that paid $75 million in fines and Penalties in 2015 for illegally…
[...]Pakistani “Brad Pitt” Indicted in 2012 on Counterfeit Drug Charges Finally Sentenced
Indicted in absentia in 2012, Junaid Qadir, part owner of a clandestine medication importer based in Pakistan has finally been forced to face U.S. justice. Junaid Qadir, a principal in a family-owned pharmaceutical business in Karachi, Pakistan, has been sentenced to 2 years in prison for his role in the illegal importation and sale of…
[...]Indiana News Outlet Finds Fake Online Pharmacies on Purdue and Butler University Websites
Rooting out fake online pharmacy links from University websites is an endless game of whack-a-mole for University network security officers. Ephemeral pharmacy web links appear and disappear constantly on major university websites. Inspired by one of their news gathering partners, Fox 59 News in Indianapolis, Indiana did a bit of checking with the help of…
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