Some 168 alleged drug counterfeiters and fakes-sellers are being held in Taiwan after a large-scale effort by officials to shut them down. The Taiwan High Prosecutors Office ran the operation with the help of 1,200 law enforcement agents from 115 government security units.
In all, they raided 238 locations across the nation, arresting the suspects and seizing the fake products over two days, according to the China Post. Seized counterfeits include erectile dysfunction drugs, products for weight loss, an amphetamine-based product used as an appetite suppressant, as well as supposed herbal remedies that contained pharmacologically active compounds, reports Securing Pharma. Some had labels naming a nonexistent company as the manufacturer.
Officials also raided and shut down production facilities. One such facility contained "a major counterfeit medicines plant, including a large body of pharmaceutical production equipment," according to SecuringPharma.
Manufacturers and retailers said they had worked together to illegally import materials and have done so for years.
- here's the China Post story
- see the SecuringPharma story