Officials have seized more than 2,000 fake weight loss jabs from a warehouse in Northampton worth more than a quarter of a million pounds.
Dubbed the ‘world’s largest seizure’, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) said it was also the first illicit production facility for weight loss drugs discovered in the UK.
The once-a-week jabs, made by pharma giants Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly are offered on the NHS to help type 2 diabetes patients control their blood sugar levels.
Semaglutide and tirzepatide — the generic name for Ozempic, Wegovy and Mounjaro — also trigger weight loss, earning them praise as a ‘miracle’ slimming injection.
But huge global demand has seen counterfeit versions flood the market in recent years.
Experts have repeatedly warned Britons against buying the jabs on social media and to be aware of scam online retailers posing as pharmacies, over fears they may be selling contaminated versions of the blockbuster injections.
Doctors have also told how patients have suffered seizures and have even been left in life-threatening comas after taking fake versions.
During the search, MHRA officers and Northamptonshire Police, seized tens of thousands of empty weight loss pens ready to be filled and raw chemical ingredients.
Experts have repeatedly warned Britons against buying the jabs on social media and to be aware of scam online retailers posing as pharmacies, over fears they may be selling contaminated versions of the blockbuster injections
They also discovered more than 2,000 unlicensed retatrutide and tirzepatide pens awaiting dispatch to customers.
Unlike other slimming injections, the experimental jab retatrutide, manufactured by Eli Lilly, not only suppresses appetite but also speeds up metabolism.
Because it targets three hormones involved in eating and weight regulation, it has been nicknamed ‘triple G’.
But the once-weekly injection is still in clinical trials, which means the results and risks are not yet fully known.
Along with the medication, officers also recovered large amounts of sophisticated packaging, manufacturing equipment and approximately £20,000 in cash suspected to be linked to medicines trafficking, the MHRA said.
The site, on an industrial estate on the outskirts of Northampton, is believed to have been used for the large-scale manufacture, packaging, and distribution of unlicensed — and potentially deadly — weight loss products to customers.
Health secretary Wes Streeting, said: ‘This is a victory in the fight against the shameless criminals who are putting lives at risk by peddling dangerous and illegal weight loss jabs to make a quick buck.
‘These unregulated products, made with no regard for safety or quality, posed a major risk to unwitting customers.
Health experts have urged people not to be tempted by unapproved supplies of retatrutide, warning that most are counterfeit and could be dangerous. Pictured, counterfeit retatrutide
Over the past year, retatrutide has been gaining traction on TikTok, YouTube, Reddit, and Instagram, particularly in fitness circles
‘My message is clear: don’t buy weight loss medications from unregulated sources.
‘Talk to your GP, seek NHS advice, and don’t line the pockets of criminals who don’t care about your health.
‘Safe, appropriate, licensed obesity drugs can greatly benefit those in need if taken under medical supervision, and I urge people to only purchase and use them with the approval and oversight of medics and pharmacists.’
Andy Morling, head of the MHRA’s Criminal Enforcement Unit, added: ‘This seizure shows the lengths these criminals will go to for profit. People should be extremely cautious when buying medicines online.
‘Prescription medicines should only be obtained from a registered pharmacy against a prescription issued by a healthcare professional.
‘Taking prescription medicines sourced in any other way carries serious risks to your health – there are no guarantees about what they contain, and some may even be contaminated with toxic substances.
‘Taking out the first illicit weight loss medicine manufacturing facility found in the UK is a landmark result for the MHRA and a major blow to the illegal trade.
‘These products are untested, unauthorised, and potentially deadly.
‘By taking this organised criminal network out of operation and stopping tens of thousands of potentially fatal products from entering circulation, we’ve prevented a serious risk to public health.’
Reports of fake slimming jabs in the UK first emerged in August 2023.
Experts have repeatedly said many won’t even contain semaglutide or tirzepatide and are often just insulin pens which have been repackaged to look like the real thing, fooling customers.
When patients inject themselves, this insulin surge causes a rapid drop in blood sugar — which can potentially be fatal.
Last year, tests on black-market versions of Mounjaro and Ozempic also found they were laced with rat poison and even cement.
In a separate operation, border officials also intercepted hundreds of dangerous ‘DIY’ injection kits destined for the UK, part of a wider crackdown on organised gangs trafficking unlicensed medicines.
The MHRA has urged any patients who experience an adverse reaction to weight loss jabs to report them via the MHRA’s Yellow Card scheme.
The scheme, set up in the 1960s, allows doctors, pharmacists and patients themselves to report adverse reactions believed to be caused by prescription and over-the-counter drugs, implants and alternative medicines.
This can lead to them being reviewed, having warnings added to the label or even being taken off the market.
The jabs, which belong to class of medications called GPL-1 agonists, have been shown to help users lose up to 33lbs (15.3kg) on average over 68 weeks.
They work by tricking the brain into thinking it’s full, consequently slashing appetite, and helping people lose weight as a result.
Under NHS guidelines only patients who have a body mass index (BMI) of over 35, or a BMI of 30 and at least one weight related health problem like high blood pressure, should be prescribed Wegovy.
While private prescribers aren’t bound by this, they still need to follow general professional guidelines and consider national guidance to ensure only patients that need the drug get access to it.
