Former VN Pharma officials indicted for smuggling medicines

March 16, 2016 - 15:00

The Supreme People's Procuracy yesterday indicted nine former officials of VN Pharma on charges of smuggling and creating counterfeit documents to import medicines.

Police investigate VN Pharma in September last year. — Photo tienphong.vn

HÀ NỘI (VNS) — The Supreme People’s Procuracy yesterday indicted nine former officials of VN Pharma on charges of smuggling and creating counterfeit documents to import medicines.

The nine indicted defendants are Nguyễn Minh Hùng, former chairman and general director of the firm; Nguyễn Chí Nhật and Ngô Quốc Anh, the company’s former deputy general directors; Phan Cẩm Loan, former deputy head of the company’s export office; and Lê Thị Vũ Phương, former chief accountant; as well as Bùi Ngọc Duy, former head of the research and development office; Võ Mạnh Cường and Phạm Văn Thông, the firm’s pharmacists; and Phan Anh Kiệt, former general director of Sài Gòn Pharmacy Ltd (Sapharco).

VN Pharma is a HCM City-based pharmaceutical joint stock company.

According to the indictment, Hùng and Cường allegedly prepared fake documents from 2013 to September 9, 2014, to import 9,300 batches of H-Capita, worth VNĐ5.6 billion (US$251,000), into Việt Nam in April 2014.

The medicines were of unclear origin and poor quality, an assessment done by the Survey Council of the Health Ministry said.

But the company said the medicines could be used for cancer treatment, such as breast, stomach, colorectal and rectum cancer.

The medicines were reportedly imported from Canada. — VNS

 

 

 

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