State and government agencies unite to stop counterfeit drugs

Special to The Mississippi Link

JACKSON – A year long federal, state and local partnership has resulted in approximately 30 federal search warrants being issued across Mississippi in search of counterfeit pharmaceuticals. More than 100 federal, state and local agents executed the search warrants simultaneously throughout the state.

The operations were led by The U.S. Attorney’s Office-Northern and Southern Districts (MS), the Department of Homeland Security/Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the Food and Drug Administration and the Mississippi Attorney General’s Office, all in partnership via Mississippi’s Operation Knock Out Knock-Offs Task Force.

Between February and November 2010, numerous undercover purchases of illegal pharmaceuticals were made from convenience type businesses across the state.

Among the products purchased were various prescription strength pain killers, antibiotics, birth control, supplements and the like not approved for sale in the United States.

“The smuggling of substandard, tainted or counterfeit products violates U.S. laws and regulations and threatens public health and safety as well as the economic well being of the U.S.,” said, Raymond R. Parmer, Jr., special agent in charge of the ICE Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) office in New Orleans. “Our ability to work together across the federal government and with agencies around the world is a strong and appropriate response to a growing international threat.”

Immigration and Customs regularly carries out operations to target, interdict, and investigate substandard, tainted, and counterfeit products being imported into the United States that pose a health and safety risk to consumers.

In addition to pharmaceuticals, other dangerous products include:

(1) Counterfeit toothpaste containing anti-freeze; (2) Counterfeit drugs containing too little, too much, or none of the active ingredient at whatsoever; (3) Tainted animal food containing melamine, a product contained in plastics and cleaning products, countertops, glues, inks and fertilizers, that led to the death or injury of pets in U.S. households; (4) Counterfeit circuit breakers that could explode, cause fires, or otherwise fail; and, (5) Contaminated food products containing antibiotics that have been banned in food by the FDA.

Authorities said Immigration and Customs along with the National Intellectual Property Rights Coordination Center – the task force at the forefront of the government’s fight against counterfeiting and piracy – will continue to work together with state law enforcement, such as the Mississippi Attorney General’s Intellectual Property task force to keep these dangerous goods off the street and bring those responsible for producing and distributing them to justice.

“Unapproved, uncleared, or misbranded products pose a clear and present danger to the public health,” said David W. Bourne, Special Agent in Charge of FDA’s Office of Criminal Investigations Miami Field Office. “We will continue to join with our law enforcement counterparts to aggressively pursue those who place consumers at risk for their own financial gain.”

Those arrested face both federal and state charges.

“This is a key example of how Operation Knock Out Knock-Offs is working in Mississippi,” said Attorney General Hood. “By partnering with federal and local officials, we can help protect consumers from dangerous fakes.”