Lucknow: Two arrested for shipment of banned medicines to US

The accused were “involved” in supplying “banned” drugs to US citizens. It was found that these persons incorporated six companies during 2012-17 and operated a call centre from the office of the said companies located in Lucknow, the ED said.

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They used to obtain raw data of US citizens from a portal and identify potential customers for supplying restricted/psychotropic medicines. They then called the persons in the US through Skype, secured orders and advance payment and later shipped the restricted medicines through India Post, according to the agency.

The accused got Rs 23.67 crore between 2012 and 2017 in the accounts of various companies, including Hatsh Telecommunication, it said. 

As part of the probe, assets worth Rs 3.22 crore, including movable and immovable properties, were attached on October 20, 2023. The adjudicating authority confirmed the attachment on March 20, 2024. Further investigation is in process.