Viagra scam ringleader jailed

5:54pm Tuesday 18th September 2007

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A man from Elstree has been jailed for four-and-a-half years after being named as a ringleader of a multi-million pound impotence drug scam.

Ashish Halai, 33, of Nicholas Road, was at the heart of the five-year plot to sell millions of fake Viagra, Cialis and Propecia pills, used to treat hair loss, on the internet.

He pleaded guilty in April, but court restrictions meant the case could not be reported until now because other defendants were on trial.

At a sentencing hearing on Monday, Kingston Crown Court was told he and the gang 'preyed' on the vulnerability of men too embarrased to seek medical help for their sexual problems.

Millions of fake pills were sold on the internet to the US and other countries but some were also sold 'legitimately' over the counter in UK chemists on prescription to unsuspecting customers.

Prosecutor Sandip Patel told the court: "The scale of the conspiracy was unparalleled in its depth and breadth in the history of the MHRA Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency.

"Geographically it was truly global and the rewards were immense for those involved."

Investigators traced the fake pills, produced in secret factories in China and Pakistan, through distribution networks in Hong Kong, Dubai, the Bahamas and the UK.

The case dates back to 2003 and 2004, when counterfeit batches of Pfizer's Viagra and Eli Lilly's Cialis - drugs used to treat impotence - were discovered in the British supply chain.

Halai, whose Elstree home is worth £1 million, was described as 'the lynchpin of the British arm of the conspiracy'.

Sentencing father-of-two Halai to four-and-a-half years, Judge Nicholas Price said: "They the drugs were so skilfully packaged that it required the trained eye to detect they were counterfeit.

"That in turn undermined the business of legitimate running companies who pour millions of pounds into research and develpment.

"The scale of this criminal enterprise was global, China, India, Pakistan, Bahamas, to name nut a few countries which were involved.

"It was a sophisticated operation. It was highly organised and I have absolutely no doubt that you were at the heart of it.

"You used your intelligence in a cunning sophisticated way and i have absolutely no doubt that you were well aware of what you were getting involved in. I am satisfied that greed is the over-riding motivation for such offences."

Halai used a variety of companies, both actual and bogus as a front to distribute vast quantities of counterfeit medicines in the UK and abroad.

Speaking outside court, Sara Coakley from the MHRA, which brought the prosecution, said the agency had to carry out a major recall, and said the scam was the biggest ever in the UK.

"During the five-year period we believe they made at least £2 million pounds but that is just what we found," she said. "That is the tip of the iceberg. Halai travelled the world in search of suppliers and buyers. He ensured the conspiracy ran smoothly in the UK."

"They had bypassed the legitimate licensing process thereby opening consumers to receiving unsafe drugs."