A joint operation conducted by India and the US to prevent global shipments of illegal drugs and medical devices stopped more than 500 shipments of unapproved prescription drugs and synthetic drug precursors from reaching American consumers.
“Operation Broader Sword” was a bilateral multi-agency enforcement action that specifically targeted illicit pharmaceuticals, devices or precursor chemicals shipped using the international mail system, the US embassy said in a statement on Friday.
The operation was carried out jointly by India’s Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), and the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Customs and Border Protection (CBP), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and US Postal Inspection Service (USPIS).
The operation, conducted in June, stopped “500 shipments of illicit, and potentially dangerous, unapproved prescription drugs, combination medical devices, and synthetic drug precursors from reaching American consumers”, the statement said.
Operation Broader Sword targeted packages entering the US from India through the New York (JFK) and Chicago (ORD) international mail facilities (IMFs) during June 12-23. Investigators examined more than 1,500 shipments originating in India, and took action on about 500 products, including “illicit and illegal medications intended to treat and or mitigate serious diseases”.
“Many shipments were determined to have included opioid and other controlled substance drug products,” the statement said.
HSI special agents also conducted a “controlled delivery of a shipment of suspected products” that resulted in the arrest of an Indian national for “illegal importation of illicit pharmaceuticals including opioids and other controlled substances”.
Mark Fredrick, the DEA country attaché for India, said: “US law enforcement and regulatory agencies already enjoy a strong working relationship with Indian counterparts under the bilateral Counternarcotics Working Group and now have expanded that cooperation to work closely under Operation Broader Sword.”
Initiatives such as this operation protect people in the US and India, and help India “identify traffickers who either operate or seek to expand into India”, he said. The operation also helps Indian law enforcement “strengthen protections against flows of illicit drugs that may harm Indian citizens”.
Such bilateral multi-agency efforts not only interdict illegal and potentially harmful products from reaching consumers in the US, but also provide information on shipping patterns and parties of interest that warrant additional enforcement actions, according to the statement.
Working together, US and Indian law enforcement officials gain understanding of international criminal networks that can be leveraged to protect citizens of both countries.
Operation Broader Sword built on the success of Operation Broadsword, which too targeted mail parcels containing illicit medical products from India and was conducted in 2020 at Chicago IMF.
The earlier operation also included the participation of Indian officials and stopped the shipment of illicit and potentially dangerous unapproved prescription drugs and combination medical devices from reaching consumers.
