Home / Crime and Justice / Organized Crime Gangs Flood UK with Counterfeit Weight-Loss Drugs
Organized Crime Gangs Flood UK with Counterfeit Weight-Loss Drugs
11 Nov, 2025
Summary
- Criminals designing packaging to mimic legitimate medicines
- Largest ever seizure of trafficked weight-loss drugs by global authorities
- New model of production with investment in branding and packaging

In a concerning development, organized crime gangs have begun manufacturing their own branded weight-loss drugs, designed to mimic legitimate medicines. According to the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), this new model of production has emerged in the last few months, leading to the largest single seizure of trafficked weight-loss drugs ever recorded by any global law enforcement agency.
The MHRA's head of criminal enforcement, Andy Morling, explains that criminals are now investing heavily in designing their own packaging and branding to sell these unlicensed and illegal products, purporting them to be genuine. This sophisticated approach is a significant concern, as it gives customers a false sense of security, thinking they are buying legitimate medicines.




