Americans jailed for handling stolen medicines
The prescription medicines belonged to Bayer, Perrigo and Sandoz
A New Jersey federal court in the US has jailed three Florida men for conspiring to possess and sell prescription medication taken from stolen lorries. Ernesto Romero-Vidal, received an 80-month prison sentence; Rocke R. Lopez-Batista, 40 months; and Ariel Garcia, 18 months. They had pleaded guilty, with Romero-Vidal also admitting conspiring to receive and sell stolen goods, including pharmaceuticals belonging to pharma companies Bayer, Perrigo, and Sandoz.
The court heard that they conspired with others to possess prescription respiratory medicines manufactured by Mylan, which were taken from a stolen lorry in Tampa, Florida. They received US$140,000 for handing over the stolen medicine.
Romero-Vidal received smaller payments for brokering this sale and also for medication stolen from a Bayer product distribution centre in Mississippi, and Perrigo for medicines stolen from a lorry in Dallas. He also admitted helping to sell stolen Sandoz prescription respiratory medicines.
Each defendant was ordered to pay US$264,900. Garcia will also serve three years of post-release probation and Lopez-Batista and Romero-Batista one year each.