Agents seize nearly $100,000 in Viagra-like pills at O’Hare
Federal officers seized nearly $100,000 worth of erectile dysfunction pills Thursday morning from a man who flew into Chicago O’Hare International Airport from India, U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials said Friday.
The man was on his way to Savannah, Georgia, from a trip to India when officers at O’Hare found eight blackand-white boxes of pills in his luggage, said Steven Bansbach, a spokesperson for the agency’s Chicago field office.
Inside were 3,200 red tablets of Vigore, an erectile dysfunction medication with active ingredients similar to Viagra, worth an estimated $96,608, according to a news release.
The man had declared he had some merchandise when he arrived at Customs — sometimes, travelers must pay duties on what they bring across international borders — so he was sent to a secondary inspection, Bansbach said. There, officers checked his bags and found the boxes of pills.
When officers asked why he had the pills, the man “stated they were for his friends” and claimed they are over-the-counter medication in India, according to the agency.
The man forfeited the pills, Bansbach said.
The Food and Drug Administration doesn’t generally allow people to bring prescription drugs they purchased outside the U.S. back into the country.
“Prescription medications manufactured in nonregulated foreign companies often contain dangerous contaminants or ineffective compounds, and though their packaging and labeling can be similar to genuine products, inconsistent ingredients and subpar quality controls can endanger the consumer,” said the agency in a news release.
Customs and Border Protection will not pursue any fines or charges, Bansbach said.