November 1, 2017: Pair Sentenced on Federal Conspiracy
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Food and Drug Administration
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U.S. Department of Justice Press Release
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For Immediate Release |
United States Department of Justice Western District of Virginia |
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Rahil Mir and Alok Jaiswal Admitted to Selling Controlled Substances from India into the United States
Abingdon, VIRGINIA – A pair of men from India, who made cold calls to the United States for the purpose of selling versions of pharmaceutical drugs illegal in the United States, including controlled substances, were sentenced yesterday in the United States District Court in Abingdon to federal conspiracy charges, Acting United States Attorney Rick A. Mountcastle announced.
Alok Kailashnath Jaiswal, 32, of Azangarh, India, and Rahil Parvez Mir, 25, of Mumbai, India, previously waived their right to be indicted and pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit offenses against the United States: Specifically, to illegally distribute controlled substances, to fraudulently and knowingly import into the United States any merchandise contrary to law, and to introduce into interstate commerce a drug that was misbranded, with the intent to defraud and mislead.
Yesterday in Federal Court, Jaiswal and Mir were sentenced to time served and were ordered to be deported. The court also imposed a $30,000 forfeiture which was paid by the defendants.
Jaiswal and Mir made cold calls from India to individuals in the United States to solicit orders for versions of pharmaceutical drugs, including controlled substances, which were not approved for sale in the United States. The defendants then obtained payment, typically via wire transfer, from the United States purchasers and illegally shipped the drugs to recipients in the United States.
A law enforcement officer, working in an undercover capacity in the Western District of Virginia, made several purchases from Jaiswal and Mir. The substances shipped included acetaminophen with codeine (Schedule III), lorazepam (Schedule IV), human growth hormone, sildenafil and tadalafil.
The investigation of the case was conducted by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration – Office of Criminal Investigations with the assistance of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Drug Diversion Office in New Delhi, India. Assistant United States Attorney Randy Ramseyer prosecuted the case for the United States.
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