Indian national Sanjay Kumar, 45, was sentenced today to 43 months in prison and one year of supervised release for conspiring to sell tens of thousands of dollars’ worth of counterfeit oncology pharmaceuticals into the United States. Kumar pleaded guilty last year to one count of conspiracy to traffic in counterfeit goods.
According to court documents, between approximately August 2018 and June 2024, Sanjay Kumar, with the aid of co-conspirators, arranged for the sale of counterfeit versions of the prescription drug, Keytruda, used to treat cancer to undercover law enforcement agents. Keytruda is a cancer immunotherapy treatment that is approved in the United States for a variety of different conditions, including certain types of melanomas, lung cancer, head and neck cancer, Hodgkin lymphoma, gastric cancer, cervical cancer, and breast cancer. Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC has the exclusive right to authorize the manufacture of Keytruda for introduction into interstate commerce.
Kumar and his co-conspirators sold fake Keytruda that bore counterfeit marks. The medication that Kumar pled guilty to trafficking was chemically inconsistent with real Keytruda, and did not contain the active ingredient necessary for the drug to serve its medical purpose, thereby making it wholly ineffective. Kumar and his co-conspirators received approximately $89,268 for their sales of purported Keytruda with counterfeit marks to undercover investigators.
Before his arrest in Houston, Kumar attempted to arrange for additional sales and shipments of Keytruda into the United States when meeting in-person with undercover law enforcement agents. Kumar made it clear in this meeting that he understood the risks posed by counterfeit pharmaceuticals, explaining that counterfeit Keytruda would not work to treat cancer and was “just like water.”
Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Nicholas Ganjei for the Southern District of Texas, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Houston acting Special Agent in Charge Erin Burke, and Acting Special Agent in Charge Jonathan Lamb of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Office of Criminal Investigations, Kansas City Field Office made the announcement.
HSI investigated the case with assistance provided by the FDA.
Trial Attorneys Ethan Cantor and Bryce Rosenbower of the Justice Department’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section (CCIPS) and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jay Hileman for the Southern District of Texas prosecuted the case. CCIPS Trial Attorney Jeff Pearlman also provided valuable assistance.
CCIPS investigates and prosecutes cybercrime and intellectual property crime in coordination with domestic and international law enforcement agencies, often with assistance from the private sector. Since 2020, CCIPS has secured the conviction of over 180 cybercriminals and IP criminals, and court orders for the return of over $350 million in victim funds.
