Thousands of unlicensed medical products seized in morning of raids in Bolton
The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency’s (MHRA) Criminal Enforcement Unit (CEU) seized a quantity of suspected unlicensed medical products following coordinated raids at three residential and six business premises in Bolton, Greater Manchester.
The operation saw raids across nine addresses in Bolton, Westhoughton and Leigh in the early hours of Thursday 13 July 2023, where two women and a man were arrested.
Officers from the MHRA and Greater Manchester Police seized unlicensed medical products including unlicensed versions of Botox, numbing agents and dermal fillers.
Andy Morling, MHRA Deputy Director of Criminal Enforcement said:
Medicines like these are powerful and dangerous in the wrong hands, potentially leading to serious adverse health consequences. The criminals trading in these products are not only breaking the law, they also have no regard for your safety.
It is illegal to advertise, sell or supply medicines such as these without the appropriate authorisation. If you see these products, or any other powerful medicines, being sold on social media or elsewhere online, think. It’s unlikely to be legitimate. You can help the MHRA take action by reporting concerns to us through our Yellow Card scheme.
Our Criminal Enforcement Unit will continue working to protect your health by disrupting this harmful and illegal trade. We’re grateful to our partners in Greater Manchester Police, for helping in our efforts to do this today.
Detective Inspector James Coles from GMP’s Economic Crime Unit said:
This morning’s action showcases a really good example of partners working together to combat issues that are prevalent in our communities, we are determined to tackle money laundering in Greater Manchester and endeavour to make it as hard as possible for individuals to conceal illicit finance.
Whilst we have 3 in custody, an investigation remains ongoing, and we will continue to investigate and eradicate this type of criminal activity from the area.
Find out more
MHRA safety advice when buying medicines online
Be careful when buying medicines online.
Medicines and medical devices are not ordinary consumer goods and their sale and supply is tightly controlled. Websites operating outside the legal supply chain may seem tempting, for example, offering a prescription medicine without a prescription. Not only are these sites breaking the law – they’re putting your health at risk.
Do not self-prescribe.
Self-diagnosis and self-medication can be very dangerous. If you have a concern about your health, visit your GP, get a correct diagnosis and if medicines are prescribed, obtain them from a legitimate source.
Visit the #FakeMeds website for tools and resources to help people purchase medication or medical devices safely online.
Follow us on Twitter: @MHRAgovuk
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Notes to editors
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A prescription-only medicine has to be prescribed by a doctor or other authorised health professional and it has to be dispensed from a pharmacy or from another specifically licensed place. It is illegal to advertise prescription-only medicines to the public. Controlled drugs are drugs named in the misuse of drugs legislation, the most common of which are on the controlled drugs list. The full lists can be found in both the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 and schedules 1 to 5 of the Misuse of Drugs Regulations (MDR) 2001.
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The #FakeMeds campaign is a public health campaign which aims to reduce the harm caused by purchasing fake, unlicensed or counterfeit medical products online. The #FakeMeds campaign site gives practical steps the public can take when purchasing medical products safely online. This includes purchasing from recognised sources and the product marks to look out for. Previous phases of the campaign have focused on fake erectile dysfunction (ED) medicines, dodgy diet pills and fake self-testing STI kits. Further advice and top tips to safe purchasing medicines and medical products online.
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The MHRA Yellow Card scheme helps the MHRA monitor the safety of all healthcare products in the UK to ensure they are acceptably safe for patients and those that use them. Members of the public can report suspicious offers and any side effects through the Yellow Card website.
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Botulinum toxins, commonly known as Botox, have multiple licensed indications and can be used for excessive sweating and chronic headaches but only when administered by a medical practitioner who is on a register to show they meet set standards in training, skill and insurance. Botox can only be prescribed in a face-to-face meeting by a qualified medical practitioner. Botox can also be used for temporary improvement of the appearance of facial lines but only when the severity of facial lines has an important psychological impact in adult patients.
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Botox can be injected into the skin for off-label, cosmetic purposes for people in the UK over the age of 18 to smooth lines and wrinkles. A prescriber during a consultation with a patient can make a professional decision to prescribe a medicine outside the indications stated in the medicine’s licence to meet the specific clinical needs of their patient. They do this on their own personal responsibility.
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Lidocaine is a local anaesthetic. It can often be found over the counter and used as pain relief for the mouth and throat such as mouth ulcers, sore throats and teething in the form of a spray, ointment or gel, and can also be used as pain relief for haemorrhoids. A doctor or nurse may also prescribe lidocaine cream ahead of a minor procedure, which can be applied directly to the area of skin to be treated.
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The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is responsible for regulating all medicines and medical devices in the UK by ensuring they work and are acceptably safe. All our work is underpinned by robust and fact-based judgements to ensure that the benefits justify any risks.
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The MHRA is an executive agency of the Department of Health and Social Care.
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For media enquiries, please contact the newsdesk@mhra.gov.uk.
Updates to this page
Last updated 13 July 2023 + show all updates
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Greater Manchester Police quote updated.
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Two additional business addresses were raided by Greater Manchester Police.
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First published.