The Lagos State Police Command said two suspects were apprehended Saturday evening, while on a mission to change the dates of at least 70 cartons of expired drugs.
Police Spokesperson Benjamin Hundeyin on Sunday, shared the information on his official handle. He said the suspects were arrested by a patrol team from Okokomaiko police division, while conveying 70 cartons of expired Cyproheptadine Caplets.
“At about 5:40pm yesterday, a patrol team from Okokomaiko Division stopped and searched a Volkswagen LT bus at Afromedia.
“Found in the bus were seventy cartons of Feed Fine Cyproheptadine Caplets 4g, all with expiry date of 2016,” he wrote.
Hundeyin said the suspects admitted that they were heading to a location, where they would change the dates on the expired drugs from 2016 to a recent date.
“The two occupants of the vehicle, Augustine Egemoye ‘m’ aged 60 and Innocent Eremosele ‘m’ aged 35 confessed they were taking the expired drugs to somebody in Alaba who would change the expiry dates and thereafter proceed with the drugs to Port-harcourt to be sold.
“Suspects, drug and the vehicle are currently in custody. Efforts are on to arrest the owner of the drugs, the individual altering expiry dates and other indicted persons.”
The use of expired drugs has become rampant in Nigeria. While some consumers are too impatient to check the expiry dates on the medication they are purchasing, others simply don’t mind at all.
However, some distributors of these medications who do not want to lose money, alter these dates to deceive unsuspecting consumers.
Unfortunately, expired products are dangerous to health, and can lead to various health implications.
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), and other relevant agencies must take timely steps toward addressing the menace of altering dates on food and drugs for selfish gains at the expense of people’s lives.