Home / Crime and Justice / Medical Store Owner Arrested in Massive Cough Syrup Ring
Medical Store Owner Arrested in Massive Cough Syrup Ring
15 Feb
Summary
- Store operator supplied codeine syrup despite license suspension.
- He purchased over 55,000 codeine syrups and 1.2 lakh tablets.
- Accused deliberately deleted digital records to hinder investigation.
Sumit Kesarwani, owner of Balaji medical store in Kanpur, has been apprehended by the crime branch in connection with an extensive illegal codeine-containing cough syrup trafficking operation. A reward of Rs 25,000 had been declared for information leading to his arrest.
Investigations uncovered that Kesarwani sourced codeine syrups from Idika Lab Sciences in Lucknow, selling them at significantly inflated prices to meet addiction demands. His retail license had been suspended in 2024, yet he persisted in supplying approximately 55,671 codeine-containing cough syrups and 1.2 lakh Alprazolam tablets, acquired through fraudulent means.
Further details indicate Kesarwani purchased medicines from Arpik Pharma Manufacturing Company and Vinod Agrawal, a known kingpin in the codeine syrup business. He is also accused of deliberately deleting digital data to impede the investigation. Kesarwani has been sent to jail, with two previous cases registered against him.
