"Struggling with 'Menopause'? Man Arrested for Selling Over 400 Million Won Worth of Forged Prescription Female Hormones"

Busan Police Agency Arrests Mr. A for Selling 400 Million Won Worth Over 5 Years; Three Others Including Pharmacist Involved in Sales Booked Without Detention

Female hormone drugs forged with obstetrics and gynecology prescriptions and distributed in large quantities.
[Image source=Busan Police Agency]

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Yong-woo] A man (A) who forged obstetrics and gynecology prescriptions to purchase large quantities of female hormones at pharmacies and resold them at high prices on internet cafes was arrested, while the pharmacist who sold the drugs was booked without detention.

Mr. A purchased hormone drugs that help restore women's bodily functions such as menopause using forged prescriptions and sold approximately 420 million KRW worth of them over five years through the internet. The pharmacist who sold the drugs to Mr. A is under investigation.

The Busan Metropolitan Police Agency's Violent Crime Investigation Unit (Chief Superintendent Park Jun-kyung) announced on the 30th that they arrested and detained Mr. A and criminally charged three others, including pharmacists who used courier or motorcycle quick services to sell large quantities of female hormones.

From June 2016 to November 2020, Mr. A forged hospital prescriptions using a doctor's license number and institution number from a certain hospital.

After purchasing female hormones worth approximately 91 million KRW from pharmacies in Busan and Gyeongnam, he sent messages to internet cafe members or posted advertisements, selling the female hormones at 2 to 3 times the purchase price, totaling about 420 million KRW.

Buyers were concerned about their identities being exposed when purchasing the drugs, so they bought them 'secretly' from Mr. A.

The pharmacists who sold female hormones to Mr. A knew that they were illegally selling prescription drugs but accepted orders via mobile phones and delivered the drugs using courier or motorcycle quick services.

The female hormones sold by Mr. A were non-reimbursed prescription drugs, which are not reported to the National Health Insurance Service by pharmacies. Knowing this, Mr. A was able to forge prescriptions, purchase large quantities of female hormones, and sell them at high prices.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.