Seven held for black marketing of duplicate oximeters

Police in Kathmandu on Tuesday arrested seven persons for black marketing of duplicate oximeters.

The arrested have been identified as Shikhar Shrestha (29), owner of Bio Plus Pharma, Kuleshwor and resident of Kamalamai Municipality-4 in Sindhuli district, currently residing in KMC-14; Thumraj Upadhyaya (21) of Khaptad Rural Municipality-6 in Bajura district, currently living in Kupondole, Lalitpur Metropolis-5; Sheshkanta Adhikari (27), owner of Nanotech Pharma, Thapathali and resident of Panchamul Rural Municipality-6, Syangja district, currently residing in Gwarko, Lalitpur-14; Pushkar Ghimire (39), staff at Chirayu KD Group Pvt Ltd and resident of Inaruwa Municipality-6, Sunasari district, currently residing in Bhimsengola, KMC; Bishal Acharya (44), staff at Aha Industrial Co. Pvt Ltd and resident of Biratnagar Metropolis-2, Morang, who had currently been residing in Anamnagar, KMC-28; Santosh Bhandari (21) of Sunkoshi Rural Municipality-6, Sindhupalhowk, currently been residing in Baghbazar, KMC and Jagadish Prasad Ranasariya (55) of JhunJhunu in Rajasthan, India, who had currently been living in Dhungeadda, Kathmandu district.

A pulse oximeter is a medical device that is used in monitoring the oxygen saturation of a patient's blood. With the surge in coronavirus infections, demand for oximeters has increased significantly.

Acting on a tip-off that some pharmacies and drug stores were involved in black marketing of duplicate oximeters and selling the devices at a higher price, a team of security personnel deployed from the Metropolitan Crime Division, Minbhawan held them yesterday.

Police said that the oximeters did not have any labels denoting the brand name, manufacture date, expiry date and retail price.

The preliminary investigation shows that Bishal had brought the oximeters from China by concealing them in boxes meant for laces used for face masks through D &D Enterprises, New Road, police said, and added that each medical device which is worth only Rs 700 was being sold at Rs 2,220.

Police seized a total of 765 oximeters including 85 from Kuleshwor-based Bio Plus Pharmacy, 24 from Nanotech Pharma, Thapathali, nine from Chirayu KD Group, 396 from the possession of Indian national Ranasariya, 91 from the possession of Bhandari.

Likewise, law enforcers also seized 160 of the duplicate oximeters purchased by Chirayu KD Group which were sent through NK Logistics to its branch in Rupandehi. 

Meanwhile, the arrestees have been handed over to Metropolitan Police Range, Kathmandu for necessary investigation after a monitoring team including Kathmandu's Assistant Chief District Officer, Department of Drug Administration and Department of Commerce, Supplies and Consumer Protection took stock of the case.

Earlier, police arrested a youth for black marketing of Remdesivir injections at an exorbitant price and recovered six injections from him in Basundhara, Kathmandu on May 6.