Raids on the counterfeit dietary supplement ring

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Individuals from Russia, Ukraine, Bulgaria, Poland, and Romania have been involved in selling counterfeit medicines over the past six years, falsely claiming that some products can cure incurable diseases.

Prosecutors from the Directorate for Investigating Organized Crime and Terrorism (DIICOT) in Iași, along with police officers from BCCO Iași, DCCO, BCCO Bucharest, BCCO Timișoara, SCCO Hunedoara, SCCO Ilfov, SCCO Caraș-Severin, and SCCO Covasna, executed 41 search warrants across Iași, Ilfov, Hunedoara, Timiș, Caraș-Severin, Covasna, and Bucharest. This operation is part of a case involving serious crimes such as forming an organized criminal group, continuous fraud with severe consequences, continuous computer fraud, money laundering, and continuous tax evasion.

Evidence revealed that since 2019, several individuals from Romania, Moldova, Ukraine, Russia, Bulgaria, and Poland, supported by a network of collaborators organized into four distinct operational tiers, acted in coordination until May 12, 2026, as part of this organized crime group. Their aim was to obtain large sums of money by deceiving customers into purchasing specific dietary supplements.

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The investigation showed that by the time the organized criminal group was dismantled, its members had caused damages amounting to at least 371,129,164 lei, 107,627,127 euros, 1,760,586 BGN, and 1,302,548,587 HUF to victims in Romania, other EU member states, and non-EU countries.

They applied a proactive model for resource management and optimized criminal activities

„The organized criminal group conducted extensive and meticulously organized activities both within Romania and in other countries, refining their methods over time. They applied a proactive model for resource management and optimized criminal activities while also using a reactive model to identify vulnerabilities and address them immediately. The group’s leaders established companies to market various products labeled as dietary supplements, which were fraudulently promoted across several EU countries, including Romania. To maintain the appearance of legality, these companies had registered offices and bank accounts where the proceeds from the sale of these unauthorized supplements were deposited. The products were primarily promoted online by a company that presented itself as an affiliate marketing entity – a type of online marketing where the parent company sells products through partners who earn commissions. This company created extensive networks of virtual sellers who crafted numerous misleading websites designed to deceive as many people as possible,” DIICOT reported on Thursday.

Additionally, through this company’s online platform, new affiliates were instructed to direct customers to a specific webpage, where the customers would fill out a simple form with their phone numbers. Subsequently, the victims were contacted by call center operators employed by companies set up for this purpose, who contributed to misleading the customers.

They were falsely claimed to be genuine treatments for serious and incurable diseases

The platform also included training for affiliates on how to create fake social media accounts, how to develop these accounts to appear legitimate and evade detection, as well as ongoing training sessions, some of which were paid for. After a customer placed an order for the promoted „dietary supplement,” the affiliate responsible for securing the order received a predetermined commission.

„It is important to note that although the products were labeled as dietary supplements, they were falsely claimed to be genuine treatments for serious and incurable diseases such as cardiovascular conditions, musculoskeletal disorders, diabetes, cancer, prostate adenoma, psoriasis, and obesity. The members of the group exploited the victims’ desperate need for effective and rapid treatment. Furthermore, some of the call center operators who contacted customers pretended to be doctors or medical specialists. The products labeled as “dietary supplements” by the organized crime group, which actually had no effect on the human body and shared similar compositions regardless of the claimed ailments, were promoted by misleading tactics. The online environment saw unauthorized use of the names and images of real, well-known individuals in Romania, particularly doctors; fictional names and images presented as doctors or specialists; as well as fabricated identities represented as actual customers of the products and the misuse of names and logos of public institutions,” DIICOT further stated.

Investigations also revealed that some individuals who purchased the supplements did so under the false belief that they would receive legitimate treatments.