INDIAN COPS BUST NETWORK TRAFFICKING PRESCRIPTION DRUGS TO

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 CHENNAI 000349 DRUG ENFORCEMENT ADMIN HQ WASHINGTON DC SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: SNAR ETRD PTER IN SUBJECT: INDIAN COPS BUST NETWORK TRAFFICKING PRESCRIPTION DRUGS TO UNITED STATES ¶1. Summary: India's Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) has made three arrests in South India as a part of a wider effort to prevent illegal export of controlled pharmaceuticals, primarily to the United States, by so-called "net pharmacies." The NCB's investigation has revealed a network comprised of foreign brokers, call center workers, and shippers sending oxycodone and hydrocodone without prescription to the United States. The NCB has also noticed changes in the narcotics trade in India. Both cocaine and ketamine are increasingly popular in India's big cities. Heroin prices have risen dramatically, forcing traffickers to ship the drug in smaller consignments. End summary. NCB busts network sending oxycodone to United States -------------- ¶2. NCB South Zonal Director S. Davidson Devasirvatham told post that the NCB arrested two people on August 31 based on a lead. According to Davidson, the two suspects, Imran Khan and Venkatesh Rao, worked at a "pharmaceutical processing" call center in Hyderabad. Khan was the owner of the call center, and Rao who is said to be fluent in English and technologically proficient, acted as a liaison with their foreign associates. The third suspect, Rama Patel, was arrested in Mumbai, where he procured the drugs and redirected shipments to customers in the United States. From interviews and a thorough examination of instant messaging records, the NCB has determined that the operation began when the suspects met a foreign national known only as "Paul" through an internet message board. Paul is understood to be an American and to be operating either in the United States or Australia. According to Davidson's account, the suspects acquired lists of potential customers who had registered on the website usdatacorporation.com as being interested in purchasing the drugs. Rao and other call center workers would then contact the potential customers directly and take their orders. The customers would then be referred to Paul, to whom they would make payments for their orders by credit card. Local media reports have also linked the call center to the website www.indianpharmaceuticalsmanufactures.com. ¶3. Davidson said that Patel, located in Mumbai, procured the drugs from sources he has so far identified only as "local traders" and sent them to Khan and Rao in Hyderabad. As they received customer �0A;orders, the two Hyderabad suspects repackaged the drugs in plain packaging and sent the packages via postal mail to Mumbai, where Patel then shipped them on to the United States. In all, the NCB seized over 100,000 pills from the suspects, including hydrocodone, oxycodone, diazepam and other prescription medications. Davidson said there is some evidence to suggest that the drugs were rerouted in the United States in a manner such that they appeared to the recipients to have originated there rather than in India. Davidson also said he believed Paul's role in the operation was, in addition to receiving payments, to make customers feel more comfortable and that they were not making payments to someone overseas. ¶4. The export of semi-synthetic opioids such as hydrocodone and oxycodone is illegal under Schedule I of India's Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, which requires a license for international trade. Davidson said the two "boys" in Hyderabad claimed ignorance of any wrongdoing; they thought they were merely exploiting a loophole that allowed them to profit from the drugs' availability in India. Davidson said the illegal sale of drugs abroad through web-enabled distribution centers operating in India is becoming increasingly common. It is lucrative and relatively low risk: opioids and other drugs that require prescriptions in the United States and Europe are more readily available at low cost in India. Young, tech-savvy IT professionals are usually at the center of the operations. Davidson said traffickers gradually acquire inventory by buying in small quantities to avoid detection. Buyers pay in dollars through the internet by credit card. ¶5. According to Davidson, the United States is the primary destination for pharmaceuticals smuggled through South India. The NCB's recent investigations have indicated that the foreign brokers using India's internet pharmacies also source opioids from Bangladesh, Nepal, and Pakistan, where, like in India, they are easily and inexpensively available over the counter. Davidson said that associations like that between the Hyderabad suspects and Paul often begin with postings on internet message boards. He said he had seen postings on the website www.callcentersindia.com that appear to be from people based in the United States attempting to find partners in India for procurement of opioids. He asked for cooperation from U.S. authorities to help curb the phenomenon. ¶6. NCB has been working to sensitize courier companies to suspicious content as part of its efforts to crack down on illegal pharmaceuticals. "Thus, many more seizures are expected in near future," said Davidson. Last year the NCB intercepted shipments of nearly 40 kilograms of illegal tablets bound for the United States at the Chennai airport, largely based on suspicious or non-existent return addresses. Cocaine and ketamine growing more popular, heroin more expensive -------------- ¶7. Davidson also discussed the status of domestic narcotics trafficking. He said cocaine is becoming increasingly popular in CHENNAI 00000349 002 OF 002 ¶1. Summary: India's Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) has made three arrests in South India as a part of a wider effort to prevent illegal export of controlled pharmaceuticals, primarily to the United States, by so-called "net pharmacies." The NCB's investigation has revealed a network comprised of foreign brokers, call center workers, and shippers sending oxycodone and hydrocodone without prescription to the United States. The NCB has also noticed changes in the narcotics trade in India. Both cocaine and ketamine are increasingly popular in India's big cities. Heroin prices have risen dramatically, forcing traffickers to ship the drug in smaller consignments. End summary. NCB busts network sending oxycodone to United States -------------- bigger cities like Chennai. Cocaine is available for between USD 65 and 110 per gram on Chennai streets. This, Davidson said, is a sign that rising affluence among urban elites in Chennai is creating a demand for "party" drugs. The NCB has also seen a rise in the use and trafficking of ketamine, which at USD 540 per kilo can be had for a fraction of the cost of heroin. Ketamine, indicated for use in humans and animals as an anesthetic, is also commonly used illicitly as a "party drug" with hallucinatory effects. Ketamine is not prohibited in India, and while its export is controlled through the Customs Act, illegal export of Ketamine is a "bailable offense" with a much lighter potential sentence than narcotics trafficking. ¶8. Turning to the heroin trade, Davidson said the NCB is seizing smaller quantities than in the past. Davidson attributes this to the increase in the street value of the drug, which has risen from USD 2,175 to USD 4350 per kilogram to more than USD 10,800 to USD 21,600 per kilogram. Traffickers have been less willing to risk shipping large quantities at one time as the cost per kilogram has risen. Davidson attributes the rise in street value to the reduction in licensed poppy cultivation area in India from 20,000 hectares to 6,000 hectares. Since much of the heroin found on the street in India begins as "leakage" from these areas of legal cultivation, their reduction has led to a price increase. ¶9. Comment: Davidson, who oversees anti-narcotics efforts in the four South Indian states (whose combined population exceeds 220 million),was forthcoming with sensitive law enforcement information and expressed eagerness to cooperate with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA). He invited DEA to come to Chennai to discuss potential collaboration on the case. We conveyed the invitation to DEA New Delhi, which has responded favorably. Davidson's eagerness to cooperate with DEA is representative of many local officials in South India, who are often more open to ties with U.S. law enforcement authorities than central government authorities. End comment. SIMKIN