The Finnish Customs Agency is seeing an explosion in the number of crimes related to pharmaceutical imports. This year the agency has already recorded as many crimes as in the whole of 2012.
Antibiotics, erectile dysfunction medication, melatonin (the so-called ‘hormone of darkness’ used to treat insomnia) and thyroid hormones used to treat hormone deficiency are all common finds at Helsinki Vantaa airport.
Airport customs officers handle some 40 million packages each year.
“It’s a result of the strong growth in online shopping,” said Sami Tammisto of the airport customs. “In addition low prices of medicines and the possibility to buy anonymously online help persuade people to buy on the internet.”
The number of pharmaceutical crimes has risen over the last ten years. Up to the end of May the customs board had already recorded 1,100 such offences—nearly as many as in the whole of 2012.
“The customs lad is currently overrun with medicines and different kinds of design drugs and drugs,” said Tammisto……..
………It’s illegal to order prescription drugs from outside the European Economic Area. Within the EU it is permitted to order medicines for personal use, but only amounts for three months’ doses.
Customs officials say Finns have a poor grasp of the rules. Few people realize that ordering medicine online could be a crime, even though orders for large amounts could even lead to smuggling charges.
Read the whole story: http://yle.fi/uutiset/up_to_90_of_medicines_ordered_online_are_fake/7288801
Source: YLE