The final member of a 12-strong gang that sold unlicensed erectile dysfunction drugs online has been convicted, the MHRA has announced.

Thirty-eight year old Darrell Jacob, of Hereford Street in Brighton, was sentenced to four years in prison at the Old Bailey last Friday (May 29) for two counts of selling and supplying unlicensed medicines and one count of money laundering.

Mr Jacob was one of 12 men and women who sold counterfeit and unlicensed drugs over the internet from 2004 until 2011, when the MHRA closed down their operation, the medicines watchdog said. The gang had operated from a range of locations across England, including Lincolnshire and Kent, the MHRA told C+D.

The other 11 members of the gang had been convicted over the general election period and sentenced to a total of more than 20 years, it said. The convictions followed one of the largest investigations the MHRA had ever conducted, said head of enforcement Alastair Jeffrey.

“This case shows the level and scale of organised criminality involved in the sale of unlicensed medicines. Those involved repeatedly tried to evade detection and made millions of pounds from their illegal activities,” he said.

The case sent a “clear message” to the public that “if you buy medicines online you are potentially trusting a criminal to look after your health”.

In February, an MHRA investigation led to the sentencing of a Kent man to a four-month prison sentence - suspended for two years - for selling unlicensed erectile dysfunction drugs to his friends.
 

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