Fake medicine racket: Prime suspect arrested at Bengaluru airport after landing from Sharjah

BENGALURU: A special investigation team probing a multi-state fake drug racket arrested one of its prime suspects, R Prashanth Babu, at Bengaluru's Kempegowda International Airport early Monday.Prashanth, a medical representative and resident of Papareddypalya in Bengaluru, was arrested after he landed from Sharjah around 5.30am.The arrest comes after police and health department officials busted the racket on August 18 this year. The operation was being run from an unlicensed facility near Tavarekere in Bidadi, in Ramanagara-Bengaluru South district. Drug enforcement officials and police seized spurious and expired medicines, packaging material and drug-filling equipment worth around Rs 5 crore.Police have so far arrested eight accused, including alleged kingpin Veeresh Kumar Jain, who ran the Krupa Health Care unit at Minerva Circle.The racket came to light after a labourer in C K Tandya village near Dodderi noticed discarded medicine waste, including vials, tubes and powder, dumped in a field. He alerted Shivaraj, a local police constable from Tavarekere police station.Shivaraj visited the spot in plain clothes, collected samples and informed senior officials. Based on the information, the Karnataka Food Safety and Drug Administration (FSDA), along with local police, raided a farmhouse in Kurubara Karenahalli near the Bidadi toll gate.Investigators found that the operators were running an unlicensed manufacturing, repackaging and relabelling unit.Sourcing: The racket procured cheap, substandard generic medicines, expired medicines and low-cost cancer drugs from illegal manufacturing units across multiple states, including Telangana and Himachal Pradesh.Repackaging: The medicines were transferred into new vials and packages at the Bidadi farmhouse.Forged labels: The operators allegedly used forged labels, stamps and boxes bearing the names of prominent multinational pharmaceutical brands, including Pfizer and Kupa Healthcare, to sell the medicines as expensive, premium products.You Can Also Check: Gold Rate in Bengaluru | Silver Rate in Bengaluru | Bank Holidays in Bengaluru | Public Holidays in Bengaluru | Bengaluru AQI | Weather in Bengaluru | Petrol Price in Bengaluru | Diesel Price in Bengaluru | CNG Price in Bengaluru | LPG Price in BengaluruStay updated with the latest Bengaluru news. Download the TOI App.