Fake Cough and Allergy Medicine Ring May Have Caused THB100m in Losses, Thai Police Say

Fake Cough and Allergy Medicine Ring May Have Caused THB100m in Losses, Thai Police Say

BANGKOK, Sept. 25, 2026 — Thai police are searching for the suspected financier behind a counterfeit medicine network after raids on two production sites in Samut Sakhon uncovered facilities allegedly used to manufacture and distribute fake cough and allergy medicines nationwide.

Authorities estimate that the operation may have caused losses of more than 100 million baht (about US$3 million) and believe the network had been operating for between one and two years. Police are now investigating the person believed to have financed the operation and other members of the distribution network.

The raids were carried out at 2 p.m. on Sept. 22 in Na Khok subdistrict, Mueang Samut Sakhon district, by the Metropolitan Police Bureau and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

At the first site, a large single-storey factory surrounded by rice fields, officers found nine workers allegedly filling medicine into bottles. Police seized production machinery, more than 100 blue drums containing medicine, and large quantities of counterfeit bottle caps and product labels.

Investigators said the facility appeared to be part of a wider operation supplying counterfeit medicines to markets across Thailand, with police particularly investigating distribution routes to other parts of the country.

A second site, located about 16 kilometres from the first, was a black single-storey warehouse without a street number. Authorities said it was used to prepare and mix ingredients for the medicines.

Inside, investigators found around 10 boiling pots, syrup and more than 200 drums of materials awaiting processing. Police estimated that the seized materials could have been used to produce approximately 100,000 bottles of counterfeit medicine.

The operation was linked to a broader investigation into counterfeit ALLERGIN SYRUP, an allergy medicine. Thailand’s FDA separately confirmed that a joint police-FDA operation on Sept. 22 targeted a network allegedly producing and selling counterfeit ALLERGIN SYRUP and involved searches at four locations in Samut Sakhon and Bangkok. Authorities seized more than 37,000 finished counterfeit bottles and more than 1.4 million items in total, including empty bottles, caps, labels, raw materials and production equipment.

The FDA said its examination of material found at one production site indicated that the counterfeit product did not contain the active pharmaceutical ingredient found in the registered ALLERGIN medicine. Instead, investigators found syrup mixed with colouring, which authorities said had been bottled under the counterfeit branding. The FDA also said the production site was not licensed and did not meet proper hygiene standards.

Police and the FDA are continuing to investigate the suspected network, including its financing and distribution channels. Authorities have said they will pursue further action if evidence establishes additional offences.

The FDA has urged consumers to obtain medicines from licensed pharmacies and to carefully check product names, registration numbers, labels and packaging, particularly when buying medicines online or from sources whose origins cannot be verified.

Authorities warn that counterfeit medicines may contain incorrect or substandard ingredients and could pose serious health risks to consumers.