By Chioma Obinna

LAGOS—National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, NAFDAC, yesterday, declared a suspected drug counterfeit kingpin wanted over various offences, including attempted murder of a police officer and importation of 15 container loads of fake and counterfeit pharmaceutical products into the country.

The alleged counterfeit kingpin identified as Mr. Kenneth Okereke, is said to be on the wanted list of NAFDAC for some time.

It was gathered that efforts by the agency’s task force to arrest him recently proved abortive as the suspect allegedly attempted to run over one of the police officers with his vehicle, leaving the officer wounded.

Briefing newsmen on the failed arrest during the parade of three others arrested by the agency over forgery of NAFDAC, Customs, Banks and Immigration documents, the Director General of NAFDAC, Professor Paul Orhii, said presently, three warehouses of the counterfeiter on –the- run housing over 15 container loads of fake drugs, valued at N1 billion have been visited by the agency.

Orhii, who described the feat attained by the officials of the agency as the final push towards achieving the presidential declaration of zero tolerance for fake drugs, listed some of the medicines discovered amongst several others to include; Tarivid 200mg tablet, Augmetin tablet, Proviron, Novasc, glucophage, GSK hologram, halfan, ciprotab amongst others.

He said that the agency recovered date and batch coding machines used in the revalidation of expired medicines from the suspects.