80 suspects nabbed for forging vaccine

More than 80 people were arrested and 3,000 doses of fake COVID- 19 vaccines were confiscated in a special campaign that China has carried out to crack down on vaccine- related crimes. The suspects had been profiting from the illegal manufacturing and sales of the vaccines since September 2020.

The case was solved in a joint action by police in Beijing and East China’s Jiangsu and Shandong provinces and other regions, according to reports from the Xinhua News Agency on Monday. The criminal activity was scattered across multiple cities.

All fake vaccines have been tracked, said the reports. However, it was not revealed where the vaccines had been heading.

The captured suspects might have planned to send the vaccines abroad, a source close to a major Chinese vaccine producer told the Global Times.

According to the reports, the suspects made fake COVID- 19 vaccines by injecting saline into pre- filled syringes and sold them at high prices.

“The ‘ vaccines’ filled with saline will for sure have no effect, but they will not cause health problems, so it is clear that the suspects wanted to make money, not hurt people,” Tao Lina, a Shanghai- based vaccine expert, told the Global Times.

China’s Ministry of Public Security launched a special campaign to crack down on illegal production and sale of counterfeit vaccines, smuggling, illegal vaccination and other vaccine- related crimes.

In China, each box of vaccines has a unique code that must be scanned during the vaccination process to confirm its authenticity, Tao said.