US woman charged with smuggling counterfeit anti-inflammatory drugs

A Houston woman was brought to court on Wednesday, June 28, for smuggling counterfeit drugs into the US.

Carolina Rodriguez was found to have trafficked Diprospan (corticosteroid), an anti-inflammatory drug.

The drugs were sold through a store called Naturavida. Rodriguez also allegedly sold the counterfeit drugs to undercover federal agents on at least five occasions.

According to a  press release, Rodriguez was not licensed to dispense prescription medications in Texas, and Naturavida was not licensed as a Texas pharmacy.

The US Immigration and Customs Enforcement said: “Rodriguez allegedly made a deal to sell 100 vials of Diprospan to an undercover federal agent in May and accepted a $1,200 deposit.

“However, the complaint alleges she subsequently pulled out of the deal following a police raid on another supplier.”

The copycat drugs are thought to have come from El Salvador. Diprospan is not approved for sale in the US and is not manufactured in the country either.

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