New Delhi: As part of a joint operation between India and the US, authorities in the United States arrested an Indian national and seized more than 500 shipments of ‘potentially dangerous’ prescription drugs and medical devices shipped to the country in June this year.
The ‘Operation Broader Sword’ was carried out by India’s Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) in collaboration with the US Food & Drug Administration (FDA), US Customs and Border Protection (CBP), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and the US Postal Inspection Service (USPIS).
This was a special bilateral multi-agency enforcement operation targeting illicit pharmaceuticals, devices, or precursor chemicals shipped using the international mail system, the US embassy here said in a statement Friday.
‘Operation Broader Sword', a bilateral multi-agency enforcement operation, takes action & gives results. The collaboration between @US_FDA, @CBP, @HSI_HQ, @DEAHQ, and the GOI’s Directorate of Revenue Intelligence helps both the U.S. & Indian law enforcement officials gain an…
— U.S. Embassy India (@USAndIndia) July 7, 2023
Giving out details, the statement added that the operation prevented over 500 shipments of “illicit, and potentially dangerous, unapproved prescription drugs, combination medical devices, and synthetic drug precursors from reaching American consumers”.
The US FDA describes a combination medical device as a product comprising two or more regulated components that are ‘physically, chemically, or otherwise combined or mixed and produced as a single entity’.
According to the statement, agencies targeted packages entering the US from India through the New York (JFK) and Chicago (ORD) International Mail Facilities (IMFs) from June 12-23 this year.
During the operation, enforcement agencies in the US examined more than 1,500 shipments originating in India, “taking action on approximately 500 products, including illicit and illegal medications intended to treat and or mitigate serious diseases”.
“Many shipments were determined to have included opioid and other controlled substance drug products. In anticipation of the Operation, HSI special agents conducted a controlled delivery of a shipment of suspected products resulting in the arrest of an Indian national for the illegal importation of illicit pharmaceuticals including opioids and other controlled substances,” the statement added.
Mark Fredrick, the DEA attaché in New Delhi, added that law enforcement and regulatory agencies in the US enjoy a “strong working relationship” with their Indian counterparts under the bilateral Counter-narcotics Working Group. He said agencies in both countries “expanded that cooperation to work closely under Operation Broader Sword”.
The joint operation helped identify traffickers who either operate or seek to expand into India, and helped law enforcement strengthen protections against flows of illicit drugs that may harm Indian citizens, Fredrick said.
‘Operation Broader Sword’ built upon the success of ‘Operation Broadsword’ — conducted in 2020 at Chicago IMF — during which enforcement agencies targeted mail parcels containing illicit medical products from India.
The operation, which witnessed the participation of Government of India officials, had led to seizure of shipments of illicit, and potentially dangerous, unapproved prescription drugs and combination medical devices, besides providing leads on their points of origin.
(Edited by Amrtansh Arora)