Article Topic
Drug Importation and the Deadly Challenge of Screening 275 Million Packages a Year
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in their report U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the International Mail Facilities (IMFs), describes the daunting job that Customs and Border Protection (CBP) faces when attempting to weed out counterfeit medications and packages containing illicit fentanyl. In 2017, IMFs received 275 million packages. Of these, 10,000 were screened by CBP, and of those 86% contained drugs. The investigation of a suspect package is incredibly time-consuming; an experienced FDA investigator might take as long as 20 minutes to process a package containing just on product.
[...]Major Cases From U.S. FDA’s Office of Criminal Investigations In Fiscal Year 2018
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Office of Criminal Investigations has worked thousands of cases since its inception in 1991. With a new fiscal year just starting for them, PSM took a look back at progress made by some of the investigations they have been involved in over the past year…
[...]New Death Count Charge Announced Against Utah Man Who Allegedly Ran A Major Counterfeit Fentanyl Pill Ring
A new superseding indictment was issued against Aaron Shamo, the Utah resident who allegedly ran a drug trafficking ring that sold hundreds of thousands of counterfeit oxycodone and Xanax pills. The fake oxycodone pills were made with fentanyl, and the new indictment charges Shamo with the June 13, 2016 death of an individual by one of those pills…
[...]US FDA Joins Interpol and Other International Enforcement Agencies for Operation Pangea XI
The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has announced the conclusion of Operation Pangea XI’s International Week of Action. In its eleventh year, Operation Pangea targets websites that sell counterfeit and misbranded drugs. This year’s effort shut down 465 websites that were selling non-FDA approved prescription drugs including drugs for oncology, antivirals, opioids and other untested prescription drugs to U.S. consumers.
[...]The STOP Act Will Be A Critical Tool In The Detection Of Illegal Substances In International Mail Shipments
The board members of The Partnership for Safe Medicines praise the passage of the Substance Use-Disorder Prevention that Promotes Opioid Recovery and Treatment for Patients and Communities Act” or the “SUPPORT for Patients and Communities Act, which includes the STOP Act. This legislation will have a positive impact on the fight to save lives and keep fentanyl out of the United States…
[...]Wyoming Is The 45th State In Which Counterfeit Fentanyl Pills Have Been Reported
Two residents of Worland, Wyoming have been arrested and charged for selling counterfeit oxycodone pills made with fentanyl. A young woman suffered a non-fatal overdose as a result of those pills…
[...]Three Arrested For Making Fake Oxycodone Pills In An Apartment Building In New York City
A long-term investigation in New York City into a drug ring ended with the arrest of three men. One of the men was a superintendent who allegedly allowed the residential building’s boiler room and a vacant apartment to be used to manufacture counterfeit oxycodone pills that contained fentanyl and heroin…
[...]Football Player In Texas Killed By Counterfeit Pills Made With Carfentanil
A former Rice University football player has been charged with causing the death of a 21-year-old student after selling the young man counterfeit hydrocodone pills made with carfentanil. Carfentanil is one of fentanyl’s many analogues. A lethal dose is so small it cannot be seen with the human eye…
[...]Major Bust Brings Down Drug Ring Selling Sinaloa Cartel Drugs – Including Fentanyl and Fentanyl Pills
A year-long investigation in Ventura County started off small with a total of 600 counterfeit Roxicodone pills seized. Today, law enforcement has seized a total of $10.8 million worth of Sinaloa cartel drugs including methamphetamine, cocaine, heroin, powdered fentanyl, and, of course, those fake pills all from one drug trafficking operation…
[...]Maryland Man Admits To Purchasing Thousands Of Fake Fentanyl Pills
The U.S. Department of Justice announced a guilty plea from Robert Simpson. The Gambrills, Maryland man admitted to having purchased 10,000 counterfeit oxycodone pills made with fentanyl online and selling them. By the time that law enforcement searched his home, he had already sold almost 4,000 of the pills…
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