A fake Mounjaro injection racket has been busted in Gurugram, India, leading to arrests and a nationwide alert for counterfeit diabetes drugs.
Key Points
- A racket manufacturing and selling fake Mounjaro injections for diabetes and obesity has been uncovered in Gurugram.
- Two individuals have been arrested, including the alleged kingpin, and a nationwide alert has been issued to identify counterfeit batches of the diabetes drug.
- The accused allegedly imported raw drugs from China and manufactured the fake injections in a flat, selling them through the B2B portal Indiamart.
- Pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly has acknowledged the seizure and is supporting the investigation into the counterfeit products.
Authorities in Gurugram have uncovered a racket involved in the manufacturing and sale of fake Mounjaro (tirzepatide) injections - used for treating diabetes and obesity - with the arrest of two people and issued a nationwide alert to trace counterfeit batches.
Following the confiscation of counterfeit injections, pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly, the manufacturer of Mounjaro, reacted to the seizure.
"We have been made aware of a recent development in relation to the seizure of suspicious and counterfeit products that allegedly carry our product brand name Mounjaro (Tirzepatide)...Lilly takes patient safety extremely seriously and welcomes regulatory authority's action against illicit medicines," Eli Lilly and Company (India) spokesperson said.
Investigation Uncovers Illegal Operation
Drug Control Officer Amandeep Chauhan on Monday said investigators are probing the network behind the illegal operation and tracking all those linked to the racket.
A Health Department team raided a residential society in Sector 62, Gurugram, on Monday and arrested two people, including the alleged kingpin.
According to officials, the accused imported raw drugs from China and manufactured counterfeit Mounjaro injections from a flat in society.
The illegal products were allegedly sold through the B2B portal Indiamart.
Eli Lilly Supports Investigation
Assuring that they are supporting the investigation against counterfeit products, Lilly said stronger, coordinated enforcement measures must be sustained to protect patients from unsafe fake medicines.
Mounjaro is a weekly injectable medicine used for type 2 diabetes that helps control blood sugar levels and supports weight loss.
"We received information about a fake injection chain operating in Gurugram and acting on this information, we conducted a raid", Chauhan said.
Nationwide Alert Issued
Earlier, on Saturday (April 18), officials recovered injections worth Rs 70 lakh from a vehicle in DLF Phase 4. During the follow-up probe, the team raided the Sector 62 flat where injections were allegedly prepared by mixing water with raw drugs.
"Afterwards, all the packaging, barcode affixing and labelling were done in the same flat. The team also recovered packaging machines," they added.
Police first arrested Mujjamil, a deliveryman from DLF Phase 4. Later, the alleged main accused, Avi Sharma, was also taken into custody.
Mujjamil is from Uttar Pradesh, while Avi is from Gurugram.
"A nationwide alert has been issued regarding the injections. Batch numbers have also been shared so that health department teams can remain vigilant and detect counterfeit injections.
"An investigation into the entire network is underway to determine where the fake injections were supplied and how many people are involved in this racket," said Chauhan.
