How was fake cancer medicine being supplied in Delhi? Know every detail about the ‘merchants of death’

New Delhi : A person from Punjab had bought 12 injections for his/her mother for Rs 16.20 lakh. A woman from Chandigarh had bought 10 injections for her grandmother for Rs 13.50 lakh. There was a person from West Bengal who had bought 24 injections for Rs 24 lakh for his/her father. Another woman from Chandigarh had bought 10 injections for Rs 13.50 lakh for her mother. In this way, eight people had bought injections worth about Rs 75 lakh for their families battling cancer. One thing was common in all of them. The hope that these people had bought in the form of cancer treatment was as fake as the injections. About three months ago, a gang selling fake cancer medicines was busted in the capital. All the people discussed above are victims of the ‘merchants of death’.

Police revealed the secret in the charge sheet

Delhi Police has filed a chargesheet against the accused in this case. After investigation, the police succeeded in finding 8 people who had bought and administered fake injections. Sadly, one of these 8 patients also died due to fake cancer medicine. Along with detailed information about these accused in the chargesheet, the police has also revealed about their making and selling of fake medicines. When the police busted this gang, they also seized vials filled with fake medicines from them. The actual market value of 140 vials of those fake medicines was about Rs 4 crore.
Bottle worth Rs 5000… Medicine worth Rs 100, know how fake cancer medicine was being sold in Delhi

Wife of a person from Bihar dies

In its report, Indian Express has quoted the chargesheet saying that a man from Madhubani in Bihar told the police that his/her wife was suffering from mouth and lung cancer. She was undergoing treatment at Rajiv Gandhi Cancer Institute (RGCI) and Buddha Cancer Hospital in Patna. Doctors had advised his/her wife to take Keytruda injections. he/she came in contact with a person named Luv Narula through an online marketplace Indiamart. Narula offered him/her one injection for Rs 90,000. he/she bought four injections for Rs 3.60 lakh between April and August 2022. But when his/her wife was given two injections at Buddha Cancer Hospital, her condition deteriorated and she died on September 11, 2022.

Delhi: Gang bought property worth crores by selling fake cancer medicines, how far has the crime branch’s investigation reached

They used to buy empty vials and fill them with fake medicines

The accused worked in top hospitals in Delhi and Gurgaon. According to the chargesheet, the accused allegedly procured empty vials of critical medicines from pharmacists or hospital staff for Rs 3,000 to Rs 6,000. They then filled these vials with counterfeit substances. These were later sold through pharmacists and websites for Rs 40,000 to Rs 50,000. Seven accused, including employees of hospitals based in Delhi and Gurgaon, were arrested during a raid conducted by the inter-state cell of the Crime Branch and the Drug Control Department of the Delhi government on March 12 earlier this year.
Five others were later arrested during the investigation. The accused were identified as mastermind Vifil Jain, Suraj Shat Neeraj Chauhan, Tushar Chauhan, Parvez, Komal Tiwari, Abhinay Singh, Aditya Krishna, Rohit Singh Bisht, Jitendra, Majid Khan, and Sajid. Investigators have also recovered empty vials of the drug purchased from four of the accused who were working in the oncology departments of three major cancer hospitals in Delhi and Gurgaon. Two of the 12 accused worked as pharmacists at the Rajiv Gandhi Cancer Institute.

Where and in what role were the accused

According to RGCI, Komal Tiwari and Abhinay Singh were posted in the cytotoxic mixing unit. They were responsible for mixing cytotoxic drugs on a daily basis, the report said, citing the chargesheet. Fortis Memorial Research Institute (in Gurgaon) said Jitender was working as a clinical pharmacist in the department of hematology, hemato-oncology and bone marrow transplant. he/she was responsible for mixing oncology drugs given to patients admitted under the hematology department. Venkateshwar Hospital said Rohit Singh Bisht was the overall in-charge of onco-daycare. All patients receiving chemo drugs were under Bisht’s care.

Millennium Cancer Center told the police that Sajid was posted in the oncology department. he/she was responsible for administering drug-mixture and chemo to the patients. Police said that apart from selling vials to suppliers, the accused also used online business platform Indiamart to promote the sale of fake anti-cancer injections. Seven accused had registered themselves on Indiamart.