by
Irina Popescu
Italian
investigators discovered that an organized crime group, with connections to
Romania, is behind the distribution of stolen and counterfeit cancer drugs in
Western Europe, stated an Italian official, cited by the Wall Street Journal.
The
European Medicines Agency warned in mid-April that vials of Herceptin, produced
by Roche Holding AG, had re-emerged, contaminated, in the UK, Germany and
Finland, after being stolen in Italy. Alimta and Remicade drugs produced by Eli
Lilly & Co. have also been stolen.
An
investigation determined that these incidents weren’t isolated but the work of
highly organized networks, said Domenico Di Giorgio, director for the
prevention of counterfeiting at the pharmaceutical watchdog Italian Medicines
Agency.
The
group seems to implicate Camorra, an Italian organized-crime syndicate
originating from Naples, and Eastern European networks, which include a Russian
citizen based in Cyprus.
“Organized
crime is certainly involved; it’s a central structure apparently based in Italy
that commissions thefts of medicines in hospitals,” Di Giogio said in an
interview with The Wall Street Journal.
The
drugs were stolen from hospitals or distribution trucks in Italy and
transferred to a licensed Italian wholesaler, according to a person familiar
with the investigation. That wholesaler
received invoices for the drugs from fake wholesalers in Hungary, Romania and
Latvia, and from Italy the drugs were sold in other European countries. The
entire story here.