French customs seize 240,000 fake Viagra pills

PARIS, May 17 (AFP) – French customs officials said Monday they had seized nearly 240,000 fake Viagra pills with a market value of EUR 2.8 million (USD 3.4 million) at Charles de Gaulle airport near Paris earlier this month.

The blue pills, packaged in 30,000 bottles bearing the name “Venegra”, were seized on May 7 from a flight that originated in the western Indian city of Bombay and was heading for the Guinean capital Conakry.

The labels on the seized bottles list the same active ingredient as that in the drug produced by US pharmaceutical giant Pfizer, used to combat erectile dysfunction.

But in a statement, the French economy ministry quoted Pfizer as saying that the instructions included with the fake pills “include numerous errors and do not allow for the proper use of the medication.”

Andre Courtecuisse, regional customs director responsible for Charles de Gaulle airport, said such a find was uncommon in France, as it is not considered to be a final destination for illegal medication.

“We’ve asked Pfizer’s lab experts to run tests. The pills have the same shape and same colour, but they are twice as big,” Courtecuisse told AFP.

© AFP

Subject: French news