Bengaluru: The Special Investigation Team (SIT) arrested 44-year-old medical representative R Prashanth Babu at Kempegowda International Airport on Monday morning after his detention in Azerbaijan. The arrest followed his recent detention there for attempting to smuggle medicines, according to a report in The Times of India. Prashanth, a resident of Papareddypalya, was taken into custody around 5.30am after arriving from Sharjah. His arrest followed the issuance of a red corner notice against him after police and health officials raided a stockhouse in Tavarekere on Aug 18, seizing counterfeit drugs worth approximately ₹5 crore.

The investigation revealed that Prashanth had travelled to Azerbaijan in early August under the guise of a business trip. While there, customs officials at Heydar Aliyev International Airport in Baku caught him along with two Turkish men attempting to smuggle boxes of Turkish medicine into the country. Azerbaijani authorities detained the trio and impounded Prashanth’s passport. After being informed of his detention, SIT, in coordination with Indian embassy officials and Azerbaijani customs authorities, secured his release after he paid approximately 1,000 Azerbaijani manats (around Rs 56,000) in duties and fines. Embassy officials subsequently arranged for his deportation back to Bengaluru. Upon arrival, SIT sleuths apprehended Prashanth and produced him before a local court in Ramanagara, which remanded him to 9-day police custody.

Prashanth, who is diabetic and has kidney-related health issues, was taken to a hospital after he complained of feeling unwell. Sources said he had forgotten to carry his regular medication when he travelled to Azerbaijan. His wife, who was in touch with authorities, requested help in arranging his medicines while he was in customs custody. The customs officials were informed of his prescription and details of the medicines he needed, and the medicines eventually reached him.

Besides SIT’s efforts to bring Prashanth back to Bengaluru, his wife and minor son also played a crucial role in convincing him to return. A senior officer told The Times of India that Prashanth was regularly speaking to his wife and son over video calls. The wife was advised that Prashanth would eventually have to face police, and that returning to India would allow the investigation to proceed. Convinced by his wife and following repeated warnings from SIT, he agreed to return.

The racket came to light after a labourer in CK Tandya village near Dodderi spotted discarded medicine waste, including vials, tubes and powder, dumped in a field. He alerted Shivaraj, a constable with Tavarekere police station. The constable visited the spot in plainclothes, collected samples and alerted seniors. Acting on the information, the Karnataka Food Safety and Drugs Administration (FSDA) and local police raided a farmhouse in Kurubara Karenahalli, near Bidadi tollgate. The investigation revealed that the racket procured cheap, substandard generic medicines, expired drugs and low-cost cancer medicines from illegal manufacturing units across several states, including Telangana and Himachal Pradesh. The drugs were repackaged into new vials and packages at Bidadi farmhouse. The operators affixed forged labels, stamps and boxes bearing the names of prominent pharmaceutical companies, including Pfizer and Kupa Healthcare, to pass off the medicines as premium, high-priced products.

The health risks posed by the counterfeit drugs remain unclear, though the FSDA has warned that the counterfeit labels featured non-functional QR codes and that the drugs may lack active medicinal ingredients, posing a serious threat to public health.