Archive · 26 Sep 2025
US Sanctions Indians for Fentanyl-Laced Fake Drug Network
The US government is cracking down on a fake drug ring.
Two people from India were caught selling fake pills that looked like medicine, but were actually laced with the dangerous drug fentanyl.
These pills were sent to people in America, and the government says these pills are hurting many Americans.
The US is now punishing these people and blacklisting an online pharmacy involved.
Fentanyl is a major cause of drug deaths in the US, and this is part of a larger effort to stop the problem.
Two Indian nationals were sanctioned by the US for distributing fentanyl-laced pills.
An India-based online pharmacy linked to the network was blacklisted.
The pills contained fentanyl, fentanyl analogues, and methamphetamine.
The men worked with traffickers in the Dominican Republic and the US.
The individuals used encrypted messaging platforms to sell the fake drugs.
- Who
- Sadiq Abbas Habib Sayyed and Khizar Mohammad Iqbal Shaikh, along with traffickers in the Dominican Republic and the US.
- What
- The US Treasury Department sanctioned two Indian nationals for running a network distributing fentanyl-laced counterfeit pills.
- When
- The sanctions were announced recently; the men were indicted in September 2024.
- Where
- The network operated in India, the Dominican Republic, and the US.
- Why
- To profit from the distribution of counterfeit drugs containing fentanyl, contributing to the opioid crisis in the US.
- Sanctioned Individuals
- Sadiq Abbas Habib Sayyed, Khizar Mohammad Iqbal Shaikh
- Charges
- Narcotics-related
- Location
- India, Dominican Republic, United States
- Drug Type
- Fentanyl-laced counterfeit pills
- Victims
- Americans