The Mumbai Police Crime Branch has busted a racket that raked in lakhs of rupees every month by offering remedies for erectile dysfunction.
Crime Branch officers said police inspector Sunil Mane, in charge of Unit X, received a tip-off that a racket was operating at a fake call centre in Andheri (East). Mr. Mane and his team then conducted a raid at Sumer Plaza on Marol Maroshi Road on the night of January 17.
A Crime Branch officer said, “We found 22 telecallers speaking in a western accent to U.S. citizens. We examined the script they were reading from and found them offering drugs like Viagra, Cialis and Livetra. They were all remedies for erectile dysfunction and available only with a prescription in the U.S. The telecallers were offering the drugs in bulk at discounted rates. They accepted money through online transfer but did not send the drugs.”
The Unit X team seized computers, scripts and documents, and arrested Mudassar Makandar (34) and Ashley D’souza (38), residents of Andheri. The statements of the other employees are being recorded. Officers said the documents showed the accused were also offering controlled drugs such as Tramadol, a painkiller used for gunshot wounds that even Islamic State fighters consume before going to battle.
The officer said, “As Tramadol is easier to procure on the black market than Viagra, we need to find out if the accused were selling the drugs illegally, and how their supply chain worked. If the information is verified, the accused could be booked separately under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act.”
The officer said the accused are believed to have been active for five years and making a monthly profit of ₹25 lakh to ₹30 lakh. The Crime Branch is scanning the seized documents and computers to find out if there is any record of the number of people cheated and the money made so far.
