Illegal steroids caught again

[Anchor]

Illegal distribution cases of steroids that have not been approved in the country continue to occur.

This time, a mother and son were caught illegally manufacturing and selling steroids for muscle enhancement purposes.

They purchased steroids through overseas direct purchases and sold over 1.2 billion won woth via social media.

Kim Seong-su reports.

[Report]

There are pharmaceutical products and glass containers for injections everywhere.

They have also stocked up on packaging and labels for sale in large quantities.

[“(Are you using this syringe to measure it accurately?) Yes.”]

A son and mother who illegally manufactured and sold pharmaceuticals, including steroids, were caught.

In the early stages of their crime, the son, who was a former fitness trainer, imported and sold steroids from overseas direct purchase sites.

As profits began to roll in, the mother joined in, manufacturing steroids and growth hormones herself and selling them through Telegram and other social media.

Over the course of two years, they sold more than 23,000 items, totaling over 1.2 billion won.

There are still more than 16,000 steroids left unsold.

[Kim Young-jo/Head of the Central Investigation Team for Drug Safety, Ministry of Food and Drug Safety: “To avoid detection, they received payment through unmanned delivery boxes in the form of gift certificates and cash…”]

The distribution of steroids without approval from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety is completely prohibited.

In South Korea, it is illegal for doctors to prescribe steroids for muscle enhancement to patients.

Including a former fitness trainer who sold steroids worth 100 million won, the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety has recently detected over 1,500 cases of illegal steroid distribution in the past five years.

Unapproved steroids do not guarantee effectiveness and can pose life-threatening risks if misused.

[Lee Hye-jeong/Director of Academic Affairs, Korean Pharmaceutical Association: “Synthetic male hormones can significantly raise cholesterol levels, which greatly increases the risk of heart attacks.”]

There are calls to crack down on suspected injection locations to prevent illegal direct transactions through social media and to completely block overseas imports.

This is KBS News, Kim Seong-su.