Operation Pangea XVIII: Global action against falsified medicines and illicit trade

The Danish Medicines Agency has reported 6 websites to the police as part of the INTERPOL operation, Operation Pangea XVIII, and the Danish Customs Agency has detained 19 consignments containing illicit medicines, narcotics and doping substances.

Operation Pangea is an annual enforcement initiative coordinated by INTERPOL. Police, customs, health and safety authorities from around the world take part in the operation in order to tackle the illicit manufacture and illicit trade of medical products in a coordinated manner.

According to INTERPOL, there is an increase in production, trade and distribution of both falsified medicines and genuine medicines that are stolen from the legal supply chain and resold illegally. This poses a health risk since there is no guarantee that medicines purchased through unauthorised and unregulated channels – particularly online and via social media – contain the correct ingredients or have been stored properly.

This year, authorities from 90 countries and territories took part, and 6.42 million doses of unauthorised and falsified medicines with a value of USD 15.5 million were seized. Globally, the operation led to 269 arrests and the dismantling of 66 criminal groups involved in the illicit trade.

The products most frequently seized were erectile dysfunction medicines, sedatives, painkillers, antibiotics and smoking-cessation products. Sales take place largely through unauthorised websites, social media and automated bots used to market and sell the illicit medicines. INTERPOL also notes that misinformation is helping to drive this development.

Operation Pangea has been running for 18 years with changing areas of focus. This year’s operation, Operation Pangea XVIII, was carried out over a two-week period in March and focused on illicit manufacture and illicit trade in East and Southern Africa, Central Asia and the Caribbean. As a result, the Danish part of the operation has been relatively limited this year.

Operation Pangea XVIII in Denmark

From Denmark the Danish Medicines Agency and the Danish Customs Agency took part in this year’s operation. The Danish Customs Agency focused mainly on the illicit importation of opioids and, during the operation, seized 19 consignments, the majority of which contained various types of narcotics, including illicit medicines such as opioids and cannabis.

As part of the operation, the Danish Medicines Agency scanned the internet for illegal websites and reported 6 Danish-language websites to the police for the unlawful sale of unauthorised medicines such as ADHD medicines, pain relief tablets and erectile dysfunction medicines.

“Unfortunately, many unauthorised products that may be dangerous to health are being sold online, and the people behind them are quite cynical in making the products seem genuine and authorised – for example by misusing the word ‘pharmacy’ or copying the authorities’ logo. This is clearly illegal, and we intervene whenever we can, but if the website is registered outside Denmark, there is a limit to what we can do. That is why it is really important for people to think carefully and protect their own patient safety when shopping online,” says Nina Bøggild, Head of Unit at the Danish Medicines Agency.

Link

INTERPOL’s press release on Operation Pangea XVIII: Global crackdown on illicit pharmaceuticals sees USD 15.5 million in seizures (interpol.int)