Paramedic, MR & med student sell key drug at 4x price, held

Paramedic, MR & med student sell key drug at 4x price, held

Nitasha.Natu@timesgroup.com

Mumbai:15.04.2021

A paramedic, a medical student and a medical representative (MR) were arrested for allegedly selling Remdesivir injections in the black market. Police said the MR procured the injections from the pharmacy of a suburban hospital in a legal manner while his co-accused sold it at a higher price in black.

An informant told Malwani police earlier this week that a paramedic known to him was offering Remdesivir injections at Rs 20,000 each against the actual price of Rs 5,400. The paramedic had suggested to the informant he could resell it at a higher rate and make his own commission. Malwani police immediately informed the Food and Drugs Authority (FDA). A trap was laid in Kandivli on April 13.

Around 7.30pm, the paramedic, Rizwan Mansuri (32), arrived at the location with a student, Siddharth Yadav (21). The police had already sent their informant with Rs 60,000 in cash to make the purchase so they could nab the accused red-handed. “Mansuri handed over three Remdesivir injections to the informant while Yadav accepted the cash. Our team and the FDA team swung into action and the two men were taken into custody,” said investigating officer Rakesh Pawar. It turned out that Yadav is a medical student based in Kandivli and comes from a family of doctors.

Yadav told the police that he had procured the injections through an MR, Chiranjeevi Vishwakarma (28), employed with a pharma company. The cops got Yadav to dial Vishwakarma and summon him for a meeting. When Vishwakarma arrived, he was taken into custody. Vishwakarma told officials he had presented a Covid-19 patient’s health report, his Aadhar card and a doctor’s prescription for purchasing the three Remdesivir injections.