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8 February 2016Americas

Viagra counterfeiter appears in court

A man who sold and imported counterfeit drugs, including Viagra and Diazepam, into the US has appeared in court.

In a statement on February 5, the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement outlined charges against Junaid Qadir, who appeared at the US District Court for the District of Colorado at the end of last month.

He faces several charges related to counterfeiting and selling unapproved drugs.

According to customs officials, Pakistani national Qadir, along with his brother and other conspirators, sold counterfeit drugs through a business known as JNS Impex, based in Karachi.

The company made false claims including that it was affiliated with multinational pharmaceutical manufacturers, that it could supply branded drug products, and that it was licensed to export over-the-counter prescription drugs.

Qadir and his brother, who is not in custody, used the internet to solicit orders for branded products. The drugs were supplied from China, the UK, Pakistan and India and were often shipped to the US concealed in plastic water bottles.

Qadir appeared in court on January 28, when he was ordered to be held in custody pending a resolution of his case.

He was arrested last year after travelling to Germany, which has extradition laws with the US.

Qadir fought against extradition, which resulted in his imprisonment in Germany until a court order was obtained mandating his extradition.

He first appeared in court on January 25 and again on January 28.

US attorney John Walsh said: “This case should be a reminder to everyone that buying counterfeit prescription drugs online from overseas pharmacies is playing with fire.”