Episode 12: Operation RapTor, Fake Money, New Counterfeit Pill Tech

PSM did a video story on the Heal The World civil suit from Gilead Sciences, accusing the pharmacy in NYC of trafficking in counterfeit HIV medicine. We discuss the massive four-continent bust that Europol coordinated of dark web sellers of counterfeit controlled substances as part of Operation RapTor. We also discuss CBP’s enormous seizure of counterfeit Apple chargers. We think it must have been an entire container’s worth of fake chargers, given descriptions of the quantity. There was a bust in Michigan of someone holding $100,000 of counterfeit currency. From the slightly low res photo, it looks like it was $100 bills. The tip from it came when the accused criminal bought a drone from someone for $800 using the fake currency, and when the seller realized the money was fake he reported it. But there are also stories in the news about fake currency in Canada, India, Arkansas, and Georgia. The canadian fake is actually not a bill, but a fake two dollar coin. A new portable device detects counterfeit Viagra in seconds. No special training is required to operate the device developed by researchers at the University of Lausanne, and the drug does not need to be destroyed for analysis. The device is shaped like a pen. The pen is used to scan the surface of tablets. The data is analyzed using artificial intelligence. This enables the device to determine with 100 percent accuracy whether it is an original preparation or a counterfeit.