Turkish Nationals Indicted For Smuggling Counterfeit Cancer Drugs Into US

Two Turkish nationals have been arrested and charged with obtaining unapproved, misbranded, adulterated, and counterfeit prescription cancer medications from Turkey and other foreign countries and smuggling them into the US. The men, Ozkan Semizoglu and Sabahaddin Akman, allegedly used misleading shipping labels to conceal the illegal shipments and fraudulently described the contents of the packages as gifts, documents, and product samples on customs declarations, according to a press release from the US Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Missouri. Some of the prescription drugs, which require constant cold temperatures to maintain their stability and effectiveness, were shipped with no insulation or other temperature protection, indicates the indictment filed against the two men. The two were also charged with conspiracy to smuggle merchandise into the US, and three counts of smuggling. “If convicted, each count of smuggling carries a maximum penalty of twenty years in prison, and/or fines up to $250,000,” states the press release.