Police in Vietnam’s economic hub Ho Chi Minh City have cracked down on a large drug-counterfeiting ring, detaining seven suspects and confiscating a great volume of fake medicines of which counting has yet to be finished.

After days of observation, a police team of District 8 raided a parking lot on Cao Lo Street on Tuesday and caught four local suspects, aged from 24 to 49, making fake medications with various trademarks.

The team seized more than 8,500 boxes of counterfeit medicines bearing brands such as Terpin - Codein, Decotyl, Asmacort and, Glotal.

From the testimony of these suspects, the team continued arresting two other ring members, hailing from District 10, and confiscated from them nearly 10,000 boxes of fake medicines with different brands.

In an expanded investigation later, the district police detained the seventh suspect in neighboring southern Dong Nai Province and seized from him a lot of counterfeit medications.

The rings had counterfeited various pharmaceutical products including antibiotics, pain relievers and those treating asthma and cough, among others.

 Local police have been coordinating with market management forces and relevant agencies to classify, count and evaluate the seized medicines.

The counting has yet to be completed because of the great volume of the confiscated drugs, police said.     

The ring had sold such fake drugs to many large pharmacies and pharmaceutical markets in the city, causing a great health risk to people.

The district police are further expanding their investigation into the case.

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