Health Minister, Michelle O’Neill, has revealed the seizure of tens of thousands of illegally imported and unauthorised medicines in the north of Ireland as part of an international operation.

Operation Pangea IX, which took place between 30th May and 7th June, involving 103 countries, aimed to disrupt the illicit online sale of medicines as well as raising awareness of the significant health risks associated with buying medicines online from illegal websites, or in response to advertisements on social media platforms.

A dedicated operations centre at INTERPOL’s General Secretariat headquarters in Lyon, served as the central hub for information exchange among the participating countries and agencies.

As part of Operation Pangea IX, multiple packages containing some 90,000 tablets and injections destined for addresses throughout the North of Ireland were intercepted. They included:

  • 56,000 diazepam tablets
  • 23,000 pregabalin tablets
  • 2,000 tramadol tablets
  • Other medicines including steroids, erectile dysfunction tablets and anti-wrinkle injections

 

In total these are worth up to £100,000 on the black market.

Health Minister, Michelle O’Neill, said, ‘The risk to the public due to illegal or counterfeit medicines is very real. This problem is not something we can tackle in isolation and my Department is committed to working with other agencies to stop the supply of illegal medicines over the internet.

‘Operation Pangea IX has involved the coordinated efforts of a number of agencies including the police, customs and medicines enforcement officers from my department, who will continue to be diligent all year round in their efforts and are determined to combat this serious problem.

‘The type of collaborative work well demonstrated by Operation Pangea, has led to the interception and seizure of many illegal medicines destined for addresses throughout the North. The truth is that this might very well save lives, as sadly, young people are often unaware of the potentially fatal consequences of taking these unprescribed drugs, particularly when taken with alcohol.’

Global results from Operation Pangea IX include:

  • 103 countries and 193 agencies participated
  • 393 arrests worldwide
  • Seizure of over 12 million potentially life-threatening medicines worth an estimated USD 53 million (approximately £36.5million)
  • 4,932 websites identified as being engaged in illegal activity were shut down
  • 334,000 packages were inspected by regulators and customs authorities, of which, 170,340 were seized

Professor Mike Mawhinney, Head of Medicines Regulatory Group, Department of Health added, ‘People should take prescription only medicines in consultation with their GP, pharmacist or other healthcare professionals who have access to patient health records and can take into account the risks and benefits associated with every medicine.

‘Medicines obtained through unregulated internet sites may not have been prescribed by a healthcare practitioner, may not have been subject to the normal controls on manufacture and may not be of a suitable quality or be of the nature described.

‘We urge the public not to be tempted by what look like cut prices or fooled by professional looking websites offering medicines without prescription. Taking short cuts and using these medicines could expose you to a dangerous counterfeit or substandard medicine and, additionally, you could also be the victim of identity theft or credit card fraud.’