Credit: europol.europa.eu /  The seizure included 23 000 fake erectile dysfunction treatment pills with an estimated value of €112 000

By Gary Raynaldo    DIPLOMATIC  TIMES

Many men suffering from erectile dysfunction are desperate and often fall prey to scammers offering fake medicine purporting to restore their sexual prowess in bed. Over in Poland, the  Polish National Police (Policja)  with the assistance of EUROPOL, took down an organised criminal group involved in the trafficking of counterfeit medicines and money laundering.  On 8 September 2020, law enforcement officers raided 11 locations and arrested 10 suspects, all Polish citizens, including the alleged leader of the group, according to EUROPOL . The seizure included 23 000 pills with an estimated value of €112 000, €16 000 in cash, two luxury cars, properties worth about half a million euros, a gas weapon and specialised cryptocurrency devices. The investigation uncovered that the criminal group, which had been active since 2016, was selling counterfeit erectile dysfunction drugs online.  

€260 000 in profit laundered through virtual currencies 

Credit: europol.europa.eu /  Polish National Police (Policja) disrupt fake erectile dysfunction treatment criminal operation

The investigators estimate that the suspects made at least €260 000 in profit, which was then laundered through virtual currencies.  Europol facilitated the information exchange and provided analytical support. On the action day, Europol deployed three experts to Poland to cross-check operational information in real-time against Europol’s databases and provided technical support to extract data from the suspects’ mobile phones

 Polish police take criminal gang selling fake impotence treatments off the market

Credit: europol.europa.eu / The investigators estimate that the suspects made at least €260 000 in profit, which was then laundered through virtual currencies

Credit: europol.europa.eu / The medicine seized included fake Testosterone 

Money laundering and counterfeiting fall under the remit of the European Financial and Economic Crime Centre at Europol.   Europol’s new centre increases synergies between economic and financial investigations and strengthens Europol’s ability to support law enforcement authorities in combating this major criminal threat.

Medical advances in treating erectile dysfunction (ED) have opened the floodgates for bogus treatments. These treatments not only are a waste of money, but also could contain harmful ingredients: US Federal Trade Commission

 Drug counterfeiting has become a global problem.  Medical advances in treating erectile dysfunction (ED) have opened the floodgates for bogus treatments, according to the US Federal Trade Commission.  These treatments not only are a waste of money, but also could contain harmful ingredients, the FTC says.  If a product is advertised as effective for treating ED, and no prescription is necessary, it’s not a cure,  according to the FTC.  Counterfeit medications bypass vigorous standards and the large, randomized trials that legitimate  pharmaceuticals must undergo before being formally approved for the public. Despite the potential dangers, the market for counterfeit products has grown astronomically. 

credit: europol /  Headquartered in The Hague, the Netherlands, EUROPOL  supports  the 27 EU Member States in their fight against terrorism, cybercrime and other serious and organised forms of crime.  EUROPOL also works with many non-EU partner states and international organisations.