More than 5,000 unlicensed slimming pills were 7 days herbal slim sliver blister seized from the wardrobe following a raid in a Preston home.
Police and experts from the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) raided an address in Frenchwood, and located drugs worth about 14,000 within an upstairs
bedroom.
The operation was part of an ???¨?o8.6m seizure of counterfeit and unlicensed medicines in the UK, within an international crackdown around the illegal internet trade of medicines.
Officers raided the terraced home in Roman Road, and located about 5,200 Sibutril tablets, which are unlicensed slimming pills.
They are thought to contain Sibutramine, that was banned in the united kingdom and Europe in 2010 due to a heightened risk of cardiac problems.
Danny Lee-Frost, head of operations, said the MHRA was investigating the importation of unlicensed medicines entering the UK.
He said: “The objective is to buy the message out that the internet is not safe to purchase medicines.”
He added: “You have no idea what you are getting, where it’s come from or who has been coping with it, particularly if you are experiencing just the blister pack.”
A 36-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of obtaining services by deception, in connection with the probe.
It’s alleged that he used forged documents to spread out post office box facilities.
He was bailed by police until August pending further investigation.
The operation was a part of Operation Pangea VII, which seized huge hauls of possibly damaging slimming pills and controlled drugs such as diazepam and anabolic steroids.
The international crackdown led to seizures totalling about 18.6m worldwide.
In the UK, the operation led to the seizure of three.Six million doses of counterfeit and unlicensed medicines, five arrests and the shutdown of 1,891 websites.
The MHRA’s head of enforcement, Alastair Jeffrey, said: “Operation Pangea may be the global response to internet facilitated medicines crime.
“During per week of action we’ve seized 8.Six million 7 days herbal slim extra worth of counterfeit and unlicensed medicines, shut down 1,891 websites operating illegally and removed nearly 20,000 links
to those sites which were supported by social networking platforms.”