Man indicted for selling fake cancer treatment drugs arrested in Houston
HOUSTON - According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, Sanjay Kumar was indicted by a federal grand jury for selling and shipping counterfeit cancer drugs worth tens of thousands of dollars into the United States.
Court documents state the 43-year-old from Bihar, India, along with his co-conspirators, allegedly orchestrated the sale and shipment of fake cancer treatment drugs, including counterfeit versions of Keytruda, to unsuspecting individuals in the U.S.
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Keytruda is a genuine cancer immunotherapy and was approved in the U.S. for 19 different indications, treating various forms of cancer such as melanoma, lung cancer, and breast cancer. The exclusive right to manufacture and distribute Keytruda in the U.S. belongs to Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC.
Kumar was arrested on June 26 in Houston while in the U.S. to negotiate further deals aimed at expanding his illicit business of selling fake Keytruda in the American market.
Kumar faces several charges, including one count of conspiracy to traffic counterfeit drugs and four counts of trafficking counterfeit drugs.
If convicted, he could be sentenced to up to 20 years in prison for each count and fined up to $2 million.