Freightwatch International: December 2010 Cargo Theft Report

FreightWatch International, an industry leader in providing cargo theft intelligence through data collection, analysis, and customized reporting, released their monthly report on cargo theft for December 2010.

FreightWatch recorded 64 incidents in December, a slight decrease in the average theft rate per month at the end of a very busy fourth quarter.

By location, California, Florida and Texas accounted the highest number of incidents in December, with 17, 13, and seven thefts respectively. This month, an average loss value of $383,350 resulted from the 25 incidents with reported loss values.

Violence in cargo theft remained low in 2010, however, three incidents occurred in December in which weapons were used in the acquisition of cargo, including two hijackings in Southern California and an armed robbery in Memphis.

FreightWatch is reporting four, very publicized pharmaceutical thefts in December:

• December 7th in Dallas, Texas, the theft of a trailer of pharmaceuticals of an unreported value.
• December 13th in Baltimore, Maryland the hijacking of a delivery van of pharmaceuticals of an unreported value.
• December 17th in Memphis, Tennessee a warehouse robbery and hijacking of delivery vans of an unreported value.
• December 23rd in Memphis, Tennessee a delivery van robbery valued at $439,000

The issue of pharmaceutical cargo theft energizes the need for material screening of products within the supply chain, from manufacturer to dispenser, to properly protect consumers everywhere.

As the value and prevalence increases, so too does the potential risk to consumers.

To read the entire report from Freightwatch International, visit:
http://www.freightwatchintl.com/

To learn more about pharmaceutical material screening technologies, visit: http://www.xstreamsystems.net/

Thieves Commandeer Pharmaceutical Delivery Truck and Abduct Driver

Police report of another pharmaceutical shipment hijacked by gunmen.

The Baltimore Sun reports on the story of a pharmaceutical delivery driver who was abducted December 13th while making his deliveries in Baltimore by thieves who made off with a truckload of drug products

Highlights from The Baltimore Sun article include:

• Police called the morning heist “incredibly thought-out,” and were looking for three suspects.

• The 55-year-old driver was forced at gunpoint into the back of his delivery truck and transported to an unknown location where the suspects unloaded about 80 crates of drug products.

• “The value of the drugs is significant,” said Baltimore Police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi, who said he could not place a dollar figure. “We believe the individuals responsible might have had knowledge about where and when the truck was going to be.”

• Guglielmi said police were in contact with the local FBI and DEA.

Clearly theft of prescription pharmaceuticals is proliferating given the high value and additional profitability of both the product and their packaging.

Organized criminal gangs are seizing the high profits and relative low risk in the criminal activity of pharmaceutical theft and drug counterfeiting.

The crime is has a double return to the criminal-prescription drugs are a valuable commodity and their packaging, used in the introduction of fraudulent, adulterated or counterfeit goods carries equal significance.

Members of the pharmaceutical supply chain must be on guard to protect their inventories from theft and fraudulent, adulterated, sub-standard and counterfeit drugs.

Consumers need to be made more aware of the prevalence and danger of bogus medications.

To read the entire Baltimore Sun article, visit: http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/news/crime/blog/2010/12/thieves_commandeer_pharmaceuti.html

To learn more about pharmaceutical supply chain safety solutions, visit: http://www.xstreamsystems.net/

Details on the Memphis Pharmaceutical Distribution Center Hijacking

Two men are in custody, one man still at large in hijacking that occurred early Friday.

According to an article written by Scott Carroll which appeared in the December 19th edition of the Memphis Commercial Appeal:

• Two men are in jail and another remains at large following a hijacking early Friday in which gunmen robbed eight employees and stole vans containing $200,000 worth of pharmaceuticals from a South Memphis distribution center.

• Ralph Jones, 22, and Patrick Dotson, 20, each were charged with eight counts of aggravated robbery, eight counts of aggravated kidnapping and one count of aggravated assault for the robbery of Hackbarth Delivery Service.

• The incident began around 5 a.m., as the loading dock doors were opening. The three gunmen confronted eight Hackbarth employees and demanded money, cell phones and personal items before forcing them to load three company vans with prescription drugs, according to a police affidavit.

• Employees told investigators they were then stripped of their clothes and locked in a fenced area.

• Hidden tracking devices embedded in the pharmaceutical products led police later that day to a house at 1279 College, where they recovered two of the vans and arrested Jones and Dotson.

• Dotson gave a statement of confession to police in which he implicated Jones, police said. Both are being held on bonds of $1 million.

• A Memphis Police Department spokesman said no information on the third gunman, who is still at large, was available Saturday.

The value of pharmaceutical drugs as both a high value commodity for their contents and for their packaging-which is used in drug counterfeiting-has made the theft of prescription drugs one of the more profitable and prolific crimes of the 21st century.

Consumers need to be made aware of the danger that this crime imposes on their safety and buy and consume medications only from known legitimate health care professionals.

Members of the supply chain need to take proactive measures to protect their inventories from theft, adulteration, fraud, sub-standard and counterfeit drugs.

To read the entire Commercial Appeal article, visit: http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2010/dec/19/2-charged-in-theft-of-vans-full-of-drugs/

To learn about pharmaceutical anti-counterfeiting solutions, visit: http://www.xstreamsystems.net/

FreightWatch: Armed Hijacking at Pharmaceutical Distribution Center

Gunmen hijack delivery vans at a pharmaceutical distribution center, police recover product and apprehend the suspects.

FreightWatch International, an industry leader in providing cargo theft intelligence released a news bulletin regarding the armed hijacking of a pharmaceutical distribution center.

According to the bulletin:

• Three armed men entered a pharmaceutical distribution facility as the dock doors were rolled up in the early hours of December 17, in Memphis, Tennessee.

• The armed men held 9 people at gunpoint and proceeded to drive away with three delivery vans full of product.

• Through the use of redundant covert tracking devices embedded in the pharmaceutical products, the suspects and product were tracked to a house where police were able to recover the product and apprehend several of the suspects.

Pharmaceuticals have become a valuable currency and organized gangs realize the high profitability in the theft, adulteration, fraud and counterfeiting of all medications.

All members of the pharmaceutical supply chain must take proactive steps to protect their inventories from theft, adulteration and counterfeited products.

To read the entire bulletin from Freightwatch International, visit:
http://www.freightwatchintl.com/

To learn more about pharmaceutical material screening technologies, visit: http://www.xstreamsystems.net/

Freightwatch International: November 2010 Cargo Theft Report

FreightWatch International, an industry leader in providing cargo theft intelligence through data collection, analysis, and customized reporting, released their monthly report on cargo theft for November 2010.

FreightWatch recorded 70 incidents in November. Prior to the Holiday season, Electronics and Food/Drinks continue to be the most stolen commodities.

By location, California, New Jersey and Texas accounted 64% of all the thefts recorded in November with 28, 11, and 6 thefts respectively.

This month, an average loss value of $642,371 resulted from the 24 incidents that contained an estimated load value.

On November 10, a load of pharmaceuticals worth $10.9 million was stolen a few miles away from its point of origin. The driver left the load unattended for approximately 15 minutes when it was stolen.

The issue of pharmaceutical cargo theft energizes the need for material screening of products within the supply chain, from manufacturer to dispenser, to properly protect consumers everywhere.

As the value and prevalence increases, so too does the potential risk to consumers.

To read the entire report from Freightwatch International, visit:
http://www.freightwatchintl.com/

To learn more about pharmaceutical material screening technologies, visit: http://www.xstreamsystems.net/

Holiday Cargo Theft: A Concern for the Pharmaceutical Supply Chain

During the seven major holidays in the United States, cargo theft rates increase by 28% on a per-day basis compared with the remaining calendar days.

FreightWatch International, an industry leader in providing cargo theft intelligence through data collection, analysis, and customized reporting, released a report outlining the statistics and concern over the increase of cargo theft during the holiday season.

The FreightWatch report analyzes the statistics supporting this commonly understood maxim in an attempt to better explain the increased risk faced by shippers and their supply chain providers.

By commodity, pharmaceutical thefts increases from 6% to 8% during the holiday.

It is critical that all members of the supply chain protect their inventories from theft, adulteration, fraud, and counterfeiting through increased vigilance and by deploying solutions and technologies.

To read the FreightWatch International Holiday Cargo Theft report, visit: http://www.freightwatchintl.com/?q=webfm_send/31

Freightwatch International: October 2010 Cargo Theft Report

FreightWatch International, an industry leader in providing cargo theft intelligence through data collection, analysis, and customized reporting, released their monthly report on cargo theft for October 2010.

FreightWatch recorded 77 incidents for the month of October, a substantial increase over the 55 incidents recorded in September.

As the holiday season approaches, increasing freight movement becomes an opportunity for thieves to target high-value loads.

California continues to report the highest number of thefts accounting for 34% of all incidents reported in October. Florida, Texas, New Jersey and Georgia remain at the top of the list and continually report slight variances in the number of thefts from month to month.

By commodity, pharmaceuticals had six reported incidents in October which doubles the number from the previous month:

• October 1st in Jacksonville, Florida a last mile delivery of pharmaceuticals was taken of an unreported value.

• October 3rd in Hollywood, California a warehouse burglary of a pharmaceutical distribution center of an unreported value.

• October 7th in San Fernando, California there was a theft of a trailer roadside of an unreported value.

• October 10th in Fort Smith, Arkansas there was a theft of a trailer from a public access lot valued at $50,000.

• October 13th in Dallas, Texas there was a theft of a container of pharmaceuticals of an undetermined value in a public access lot.

• October 15th in Gardena, California there was the theft of a trailer of pharmaceuticals of an unreported value.

The issue of pharmaceutical cargo theft energizes the need for material screening of products within the supply chain, from manufacturer to dispenser, to properly protect consumers everywhere.

As the value and prevalence increases, so too does the potential risk to consumers.

To read the entire report from Freightwatch International, visit:
http://www.freightwatchintl.com/

To learn more about pharmaceutical material screening technologies, visit: http://www.xstreamsystems.net/

Freightwatch International: September 2010 Cargo Theft Report

FreightWatch International, an industry leader in providing cargo theft intelligence through data collection, analysis, and customized reporting, released their monthly report on cargo theft for September 2010.

FreightWatch recorded 42 cargo theft incidents in September; a substantial decrease in the average number of thefts per month this year. The states with the highest number of thefts were California and Florida followed by New Jersey and Texas.

This month, Clothing/shoes, Electronics and Building/Industrial were the most targeted commodities. By Location, 50% of the incidents occurred at truck stops and secure DC/Terminal lots.

Finally, an average of $322,657 resulted from the 15 incidents showing loss value amounts.

By commodity, pharmaceuticals had three reported incidents in September which matches the previous month:

• September 10th in Daytona, Florida a last mile delivery of pharmaceuticals was taken of an unreported value.

• September 14th in Chicago, Illinois there was a theft of a trailer with a pharmaceutical cargo of an unreported value.

• September 24th in Dandridge, Tennessee there was a theft of a trailer with a pharmaceutical load valued at $160, 848.

As a commodity, pharmaceuticals from October 2009 to September 2010 represent 5% of actual incidents of cargo theft.

The issue of pharmaceutical cargo theft energizes the need for material screening of products within the supply chain, from manufacturer to dispenser, to properly protect consumers everywhere.

As the value and prevalence increases, so too does the potential risk to consumers.

To read the entire report from Freightwatch International, visit:
http://www.freightwatchintl.com/.

To learn more about pharmaceutical material screening technologies, visit: http://www.xstreamsystems.net/.

Freightwatch International: August 2010 Cargo Theft Report

FreightWatch International, an industry leader in providing cargo theft intelligence through data collection, analysis, and customized reporting, released their monthly report on cargo theft for August 2010.

FreightWatch recorded 58 cargo theft incidents in August; an 18% increase from the thefts recorded in July.

The states with the highest number of thefts were California and Florida, while Georgia experienced a higher number of incidents compared to last month displacing Texas to fourth place on the list of cargo theft.

By commodity, pharmaceuticals had three reported incidents in August:

• August 2nd in Columbus, Ohio there was a theft of a trailer with an undisclosed value.

• August 2nd in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania there was a theft of a trailer with cargo valued at $85,000 from a secured distribution center/lot.

• August 17th in Detroit, Michigan there was a theft of a cargo van from a secured location with an undisclosed value.

During the last months there has been an increase in the number of secure yards being targeted. In August, this trend continued to grow as the majority of the incidents recorded occurred at secure terminal lots followed by truck stops.

The issue of pharmaceutical cargo theft energizes the need for material screening of products within the supply chain, from manufacturer to dispenser, to properly protect consumers everywhere.

As the value and prevalence increases, so too does the potential risk to consumers.

To read the entire report from Freightwatch International, visit:

http://www.freightwatchintl.com/.

To learn more about pharmaceutical material screening technologies, visit: http://www.xstreamsystems.net/.

Stolen Drugs Found Back in US Supply Chain

The US Food and Drug Administration is alerting the pharmaceutical supply chain regarding the reappearance of drugs stolen in a 2008 cargo theft.

On October 17, 2008, a shipment of Carbatrol and Adderall XR made by Shire Pharmaceuticals was stolen en route between the company's manufacturing facility in North Carolina and a distribution center in Florence, Kentucky.

In the theft nearly 35,000 capsules of Carbatrol, which expired between April 30 and May 31 of this year, were stolen.

Shire recently announced that some of these stolen pharmaceuticals have begun to appear in its expired returns and that some of the stolen medication may still be on the pharmaceutical market and a possible threat to consumers.

Shire warns that the drugs taken during pharmaceutical cargo thefts are unsafe because they may have experienced improper storage and handling or tampering outside of the secure supply chain. Additionally the drugs may have been adulterated or their packaging used for counterfeit medication.

The product lot numbers for the stolen Carbatrol are 2172127 and Adderall XR are 2385012.

Those who come in contact with these products should contact the FDA's Office of Criminal Investigations at 1-800-551-3989.

Secure Pharma Chain encourages all within the pharmaceutical supply chain to verify and authenticate the medications that they distribute and dispense to make certain that the product within their inventories are safe and efficacious.

To learn more about pharmaceutical authentication technologies, visit: http://www.xstreamsystems.net/

Pharmaceutical Cargo Theft and Recovery

As organized criminal elements continue to target the pharmaceutical supply chain, FreightWatch International has reported a pharmaceutical theft and its subsequent recovery of a drug courier shipment in Michigan on August 17th.

According to FreightWatch International, the courier van that contained pharmaceutical products destined for multiple stops, originated in Livonia, Michigan on August 17th.

The van and its contents were stolen while the driver had stopped and was making a delivery at a distribution point in the Greater Detroit Metro area.

Fortunately the pharmaceutical product was equipped with a covert GPS tracker and the Detroit Metro Police was notified and they were able to recover the stolen products and arrest two suspects.

The value of the recovered stolen goods was not reported.

This is a victory in pharmaceutical supply chain security and illustrates the need and value of the deployment of a variety of technologies and solutions in properly protecting the legitimate supply chain from theft, fraud, adulteration and counterfeit product.

Secure Pharma Chain encourages that all members of the supply chain deploy a layered suite of technologies to protect their inventories and consumers.

To learn more about pharmaceutical supply chain security solutions, visit: http://www.xstreamsystems.net/.

Freightwatch International: July 2010 Cargo Theft Report

FreightWatch International, an industry leader in providing cargo theft intelligence through data collection, analysis, and customized reporting, released their monthly report on cargo theft for July 2010.

FreightWatch recorded 49 cargo thefts for the month of July; a 9% decrease from the incidents recorded in June. The states with the highest theft rates continue to be California, Florida, and Texas, followed by Pennsylvania, Georgia and New Jersey.

By location, 41% of cargo theft occurred at truck stops and 84% of thefts consisted of full truckloads being stolen.

This month, an average of $259,732 per load results from the 40% of thefts that contained the amount of loss value.

By commodity, electronics and food/drinks persisted as the most targeted commodities. Building/Industrial also appears on the top of the list with six additional thefts compared to June with only two thefts recorded in this category.

Pharmaceuticals as a commodity experienced three reported incidents in July, all on July 16th. The three pharmaceutical thefts in the report include:

• July 16th theft of a trailer at a truck stop in Jefferson, Ohio of an unreported value.

• July 16th high jacking of a truck transporting pharmaceuticals of an unreported value in Detroit, Michigan.

• July 16th a second theft of a trailer on the same day at a truck stop in Jefferson, Ohio of an unreported value.

The issue of pharmaceutical cargo theft energizes the need for material screening of products within the supply chain, from manufacturer to dispenser, to properly protect consumers everywhere.

As the value and prevalence increases, so too does the potential risk to consumers.

To read the entire report from Freightwatch International, visit:

http://www.freightwatchintl.com/.

To learn more about supply chain security solutions, visit: http://www.xstreamsystems.net/.

Cargo Thefts on the Rise-Threaten Security of Pharmaceuticals

The following is a re-post of a blog written by Patricia Earl, V.P. Business Development, XStream Systems for Secure Pharma Chain in October 2009.

Since this posting the issue of the security of pharmaceuticals while in the supply chain and in transit has become more prevalent with major criminal organizations targeting pharmaceuticals distribution points and warehouses.

As pointed out here by Purdue Pharma’s Chuck Forsaith, one of the key speakers at the recent 2009 National Cargo Theft Summit, Americans have an increasing issue with pharmaceuticals being stolen in transit from the manufacturer’s dock to the distributor’s dock or to the retailer.

Chuck talked about why transportation – and trucking in particular – is so vulnerable to cargo theft these days and what shippers and carriers alike can do about it.“On the street, one milligram of OxyContin is worth between 50 cents to $1, with single pill containing 80 milligrams. That means the street value of just ONE OxyContin tablet is between $40 and $80 – and Purdue Pharma typically ships 50 to 100 DRUMS worth in a single tractor-trailer load. Now you know why cargo thieves stalk the pharmaceutical industry like so many hungry wolves circling a herd of fat deer. While pharmaceuticals remain a relatively small part of the goods stolen by cargo thieves – making up just 6% of the total cargo theft “pie” as it were – the average value of a pharmaceutical cargo theft is very high, Forsaith explained; roughly $1.4 million per shipment. Overall pharmaceutical truckload shipments themselves can average anywhere from $10,000 per load (for over the counter or “OTC” products) to several million dollars (for the expensive bio-tech drugs).”And that’s not the total picture, either, Mr. Forsaith stressed, cargo thieves have exactly zero overhead – meaning the entire shipment is 100% profit to them, no matter what they sell it for. And when it comes to potentially addictive medicines such as OxyContin, the sky’s the limit.

The National Cargo Theft Prevention Initiative created the original National Cargo Theft Strategy to combat cargo theft and this action has been sponsored by the federal government, in cooperation with private industry and state and local governments. Cargo theft incidents in the U.S present a clear and rising threat to the U.S. economy, the well being and the national security of the United States of America. Since the first Cargo Theft Summit held in 2005 and subsequent gatherings held since, Cargo Theft has continued to be a rising nationwide issue with a significant economic impact on the U.S. economy and has a very high potential for use by terrorist organizations. Cargo crime accounts for an estimated direct merchandise loss of up to $ 25 billion dollars per year in the United States.

You can find more information on the website http://www.nationalcargothefttaskforce.org/.

Members of the pharmaceutical supply chain and domestic consumers should be aware of the proliferation and prevalence of counterfeit, adulterated, stolen, diverted or fraudulent medications. Distributors and dispensers should only purchase their inventories from legitimate supply chain members that utilize pedigrees and material authentication technologies to verify the medication and the chain of the transaction.

Consumers need to only buy medications from licensed, known pharmacies that procure their inventories from the legitimate pharmaceutical supply chain and who use best, safe medication practices when dispensing drugs.

To learn more about material screening technology, visit: http://www.xstreamsystems.net/.

Pharmaceutical Cargo Theft and Recovery

FreightWatch International via a cargo theft update, reports on a July 16th pharmaceutical cargo theft in Jefferson, Ohio.

According to the FreightWatch report, a full truckload of pharmaceuticals was stolen from a truck stop in Jefferson, Ohio, at approximately 4 p.m. Central on Friday, July 16. The solo operator entered the truck stop and found the tractor-trailer missing upon return.

The FreightWatch Emergency Response Center (ERC) was notified, and through an embedded tracking device, the load was located.

FreightWatch coordinated a multi-jurisdictional response as the load remained in-transit, resulting in a full recovery and arrest of the suspect.

The load was subsequently returned to the transportation provider for an on-time delivery.

Secure Pharma Chain is encouraged by the use of technology to aid in the interdiction of pharmaceutical cargo theft and to minimize the negative impact to the supply chain and consumers.

It remains apparent that criminal elements realize the huge profits of pharmaceutical theft and are targeting these products.

Secure Pharma Chain endorses all members of the pharmaceutical supply chain (manufacturers, distributors, transportation providers, dispensers and consumers) to be aware of and take measures to protect themselves from theft, fraud, contamination, adulteration and counterfeiting.

Not only should members of the pharmaceutical supply chain protect the distribution process and the transaction but they should also verify, protect and authenticate their inventories by deploying solutions that guarantee the quality and efficacy of the product inside the container.

To learn more about these types of technologies, visit: http://www.xstreamsystems.net/.

FreightWatch International: 2010 Bi-Annual Cargo Theft Report

FreightWatch International recently released its 2010 Bi-Annual Cargo Theft report.

As it relates to pharmaceutical cargo theft, FreightWatch is reporting the number of incidents has declined so far this year from last. However, the the overall volume or value of each incident and sophistication/organization has increased.

This seems to be exemplified by the huge Eli Lilly warehouse theft earlier this year where thieves stole $76 million in pharmaceuticals in a very sophisticated burglary.

Here are some of the highlights of the bi-annual report:

• In the first six months of 2010, cargo theft recorded by FreightWatch has increased 5% over the same time period in 2009. Additionally, there have been several noteworthy trends that differ from cargo theft recorded in the previous year.

• First, multi-trailer losses are becoming increasingly common. Cargo theft gangs are stealing two, three and even four trailers at a time, most commonly from terminals where trailers are more likely loaded with similar product. FreightWatch views this as the natural progression for cargo theft gangs, as they moved from "pot luck" style cargo theft to active targeting; now gangs are seeking a better return for their efforts, hitting multiple trailers at once while incurring the same level of risk.

• Second, Food and Drinks replaced Electronics as the commodity type most targeted by cargo theft gangs over the period examined. Electronic theft has decreased by 23% in the first half of 2010. As a point of comparison, at this same time last year, pharmaceutical thefts were down 50% over the previous year's rate, while the commodity group ended with a slight increase in volume for 2009.

• Third, in 2009, warehouse burglaries were up 50% over the previous year's rate, but slowed significantly through the rest of the year. FreightWatch recorded 12 warehouse burglaries in the first half of 2010, a decrease in the overall rate of incidents. However, due to a $76 million dollar loss in Enfield, Connecticut, the largest cargo theft incident on record, the total estimated loss rose sharply from $38 million in 2009 to $102 million in 2010.

The rise of the sophistication and organization of pharmaceutical cargo theft should trouble all within the pharmaceutical supply chain. This criminal act within the vital health care chain is evolving beyond random acts of theft and threatens the ability of all its members to protect their inventories, brand and safety of the consumer.

Secure Pharma Chain encourages all members of the pharmaceutical supply chain to utilize technologies to protect their inventories and authenticate all products within it.

To download this report in its entirety, visit: http://www.freightwatchintl.com.

FreightWatch International: June 2010 Cargo Theft Report

FreightWatch International, an industry leader in providing cargo theft intelligence through data collection, analysis, and customized reporting, released their monthly report on cargo theft for June 2010.

FreightWatch recorded 54 cargo theft incidents in North America during June; a decrease of 14% from May.

By commodity, pharmaceuticals experienced one incident in June, one less than in May. However the in subsequent follow up reports may prove that were more stolen cargo than initially reported in this particular incident.

The one pharmaceutical theft in the report is:

• The June 25th trailer theft of a trailer of pharmaceutical products in Glade Springs, Virginia with an unreported value. This theft was quickly recovered because of tracking devices placed within the stolen cargo. The theft was reported in Secure Pharma Chain Blog.

The issue of pharmaceutical cargo theft energizes the need for material screening of products within the supply chain, from manufacturer to dispenser, to properly protect consumers everywhere.

As the value and prevalence increases, so too does the potential risk to consumers.

To read the entire report from Freightwatch International, visit:

http://www.freightwatchintl.com/.

To learn more about supply chain security solutions, visit: http://www.xstreamsystems.net/.

Drug Cargo Theft: The New Goldmine

Top 10 Pharma Cargo Thefts By Value

Eric Duggan in the June 29th edition of the FiercePharma Manufacturing, writes an excellent story encapsulating the proliferation of pharmaceutical cargo theft and how it has become one of the most profitable and dangerous crimes to the public-at-large in the 21st century.

The story, aptly titled Drug Cargo Theft: The New Goldmine, describes how this specific criminal activity is likely to continue to grow because of the huge profits gleaned from targeting pharmaceuticals.

Mr. Duggan presents the listing of the top 10 ten pharmaceutical thefts in the 2009 and 2010 to-date, which with few exceptions, seem to have been lightly reported about in the media or otherwise not well known by the general public.

The reality is that with relative ease, a criminal can target a pharmaceutical shipment or warehouse and potentially make millions on the sale of the stolen product along with the ability to gain significantly more by other illegal activities after the fact.

The following is a list of the Top Ten Pharmaceutical Thefts of 2009 and 2010 (to date):

• Eli Lilly Warehouse - $76M
• Eli Lilly Truck - $37M
• Teva Truck - $11.8M
• Novo Nordisk Truck - $11
• Astellas Truck - $10M
• Unknown company - $8.8M
• GSK Warehouse - $5M
• Exel Distribution Center - $3M
• Dey Pharmaceuticals Truck - $2M
• Dey Pharmaceuticals Truck - $2M

With hundreds of millions of dollars of pharmaceuticals cycling through a black market the criminals have the ability to double their profits of the theft by separating the product from the packaging, selling the product and then put counterfeit product into the packaging and sell that as well.

With the advent of the internet, there is also a ready made, anonymous tool to market their stolen and fraudulent goods directly into consumers and the legitimate supply channel for even higher margins.

In a sense pharmaceutical cargo theft and its down stream activity seemingly is a perfect crime. It has high profitability, there is the ability to double dip on the spoils of their theft by adding counterfeit product to packaging and they can sell their stolen wares into legitimate supply chains globally through the anonymity of the internet.

Here are some of the highlights of Mr. Duggan’s FiercePharma story:

• Stolen drugs are most often shipped to Latin America or to illegal online pharmacies. Sometimes they also make their way back into the legitimate supply chain with new fake labels. This poses a potent public health risk that keeps the FDA involved, issuing recalls and investigating cases through its Office of Criminal Investigations.

• Aside from the appealing pay-off, cargo theft has gained momentum in the U.S. because of the relatively light penalty thieves risk if caught. As reported in Security Director News, cargo theft in the past has been viewed as a victimless crime, leading to slow response from law enforcement. According to Keith Lewis, task force agent for the major theft unit of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, "This is a very easy crime to commit and get away with. Law enforcement does not understand the nature of this crime." courtesy of FreightWatch International.

Fortunately Mr. Duggan offers some hope that there are some efforts being made to combat this crime:

• Greater industry efforts to combat the crime are already having an effect, however. The Transported Asset Protection Association (TAPA) offers a snapshot of cargo-theft in its 2009 incident information report, noting, "With an insight into the industry, the data signify the beginnings of a trend toward improvement--and a greater adherence to supply chain security practices throughout the pharmaceutical supply chain."

• Cooperation is improving between industry and law-enforcement. Companies like FreightWatch and the newly minted CargoNet offer loss control services, including compiling crime data and coordinating with law enforcement. CargoNet managing director Maurizio Scrofani told us, "There is a problem in fragmentation [of data]. You need a central database to tie in regional databases, which is a common way of pulling in law enforcement."

The era of pharmaceuticals targeted for criminal activity carries a huge price tag to the downstream consumer with the potentially deadly effects of contamination, adulteration and counterfeiting impacting the health of large groups of a population.

Secure Pharma Chain Blog encourages all members of the supply chain to deploy technologies and solutions to both secure and authenticate their inventories from the criminal acts of theft, fraud, adulteration and counterfeiting.

Read more of the FiecePharma article, visit: ttp://www.fiercepharmamanufacturing.com/special-reports/top-10-pharma-cargo-thefts-value-2009-2010?utm_medium=nl&utm_source=internal#ixzz0sR3PFWnN

To learn more about pharmaceutical supply chain technologies, visit: http://www.xstreamsystems.net/.

Freightwatch International: Pharmaceutical Theft and Recovery

FreightWatch International an industry leader in providing cargo theft intelligence through data collection, analysis, and customized reporting, released a pharmaceutical theft and recovery bulletin regarding a recent large pharmaceutical cargo theft.

The following is the entire FreightWatch bulletin:

A full truckload of pharmaceuticals was stolen in Glade Springs, Virginia, at approximately 9 pm the evening of Friday, June 25. The team drivers transporting the shipment left the load unattended while eating dinner inside a truck stop. The drivers returned to find the load missing.

Through an embedded tracking device, FreightWatch identified the load as being located at a truck stop in Bulls Gap, Tennessee, approximately 82 miles from Glade Springs, along I-81. At the same time, the proprietor of the truck stop where the load was found verified a trailer on the lot as fitting the description.

The trailer did not have a tractor attached, and the truck stop company parked an employee vehicle in front of the tractor until local police arrived.

Local police arrived on scene and recovered the load. Reports are the load was recovered intact. Details on this theft and recovery are still being developed and will be reported as they become available.

Secure Pharma Chain Blog endorses the use of sophisticated tracking devices be used in the transport of all pharmaceutical shipments to aid in the recovery of cargo thefts.

It remains unclear as to what will happen to these stolen goods because the chain of custody has been broken and their legitimacy is now in question. By using material authentication technology the cargo could be quickly verified as safe and efficacious inside their unit-of-sale containers without destroying or degrading the material.

To read the entire report from FreightWatch International, visit:

http://www.freightwatchintl.com/.

To learn more about material authentication solutions, visit: http://www.xstreamsystems.net/.

FreightWatch International: May 2010 Cargo Theft Report

FreightWatch International, an industry leader in providing cargo theft intelligence through data collection, analysis, and customized reporting, released their monthly report on cargo theft for May 2010.

FreightWatch recorded 63 cargo theft incidents in North America during May; a negligible increase from the 61 recorded in April. As is the most common M.O. in North America, slightly more than two-thirds of theft incidents reported to FreightWatch this month involved thieves commandeering stationary trailers with or without the paired tractor. Of the remaining third, three involved pilfering of trailers, two were driver-thefts, and fifteen lacked theft-type specification in their reports.

By commodity, pharmaceuticals experienced two incidents in May, one less than in April. However the May incidents were notable in that they happened in the same region/city and seemed to have been specifically targeted for their cargo.
The two pharmaceutical thefts in the report include:

• May 20th trailer theft of pharmaceutical products valued at $611,461. This theft has been reported in Secure Pharma Chain Blog on June 1st as being fifteen pallets of Lupin Pharmaceutical products.

• May 26th trailer theft of an unvalued amount of pharmaceutical products. This theft has been reported in Secure Pharma Chain Blog on June 14 as being several cases of products from Shionogi Pharmaceuticals.

The issue of pharmaceutical cargo theft energizes the need for material screening of products within the supply chain, from manufacturer to dispenser, to properly protect consumers everywhere.

As the value and prevalence increases, so too does the potential risk to consumers.

To read the entire report from Freightwatch International, visit:

http://www.freightwatchintl.com/.

To learn more about supply chain security solutions, visit: http://www.xstreamsystems.net/.

DOJ/FBI: Georgia Man Pleads Guilty to Multi-Million-Dollar Cargo Theft Conspiracy

Goods Traced to More Than 20 Interstate Cargo Thefts Totaling More Than $3 Million Over Four-Year Period

In a June 2 Press Release, the Department of Justice and Federal Bureau of Investigation announced that a Georgia man, John Raymond Smith, has plead guilty in Atlanta Federal Court to conspiring to buy, receive and possess goods stolen from multiple interstate tractor trailer and container shipments throughout Georgia and the Southeastern United States from May 2005 and July 2009.

Mr. Smith also pleaded guilty to related cargo theft and money laundering charges.
The stolen goods included consumer goods, electronics, food and pharmaceuticals and many of the stolen shipments were bound for major retailers.

According to the Department of Justice Press Release:

· United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates said of today’s plea, “Metro Atlanta is a major transportation hub, which makes it an attractive target for cargo thieves. By creating a market in this area for stolen goods, dealers like SMITH encourage others to steal interstate shipments, knowing that they will have a safe haven to unload and sell their truckloads of stolen goods. Consumers who buy these products should suspect they are stolen if they seem to be first-quality, name-brand products at unrealistically low prices.”

· IRS Criminal Investigation Special Agent In Charge Reginael D. McDaniel said, “Money laundering is not a victimless crime. This case is a prime example of how a criminal enterprise creates an underground, untaxed economy that harms our country's overall economic strength.”
· Georgia Bureau of Investigation Director Vernon Kennan said, “Cargo theft is an under-reported criminal phenomenon that has disastrous cascading economic consequences to Georgians. This annual estimated five billion dollar criminal activity negatively impacts transportation providers, retailers and consumers through higher shipping, insurance premiums and retail costs. These modern-day pirates cruise the nation's asphalt interstate corridors and parking lots, much like their predecessors who sailed the open seas for unsuspecting targets of opportunity. These pirates have been stopped.”

· According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges, and other information presented in court: Between May 2005 and July 2009, SMITH, who operated “Smith Sales Company” out of warehouses in Mableton and Hiram, Georgia, conspired with ROBIN L. CHEATWOOD, who operated “A-Z Discount” in Cedartown, Georgia, and other co-conspirators to buy, receive, and possess goods stolen from nearly two dozen interstate tractor trailer and container shipments valued at over $3 million throughout the Southeastern United States, including shipments stolen in Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, and Tennessee. The tractor trailers and containers were stolen while parked at truck stops, motels, and container storage facilities, often at night. SMITH, CHEATWOOD, and others then sold the goods at discounted prices to consumers and wholesalers.

· As part of a plea agreement with the government, SMITH pleaded guilty to a three count Criminal Information filed on May 17, 2010, charging one count of conspiracy; one count of buying, receiving, and possessing goods stolen from an interstate cargo shipment; and one count of money laundering. He could receive a maximum sentence of up to 5 years in prison on the conspiracy count, 10 years in prison on each of the cargo theft and money laundering counts, and a fine of up to $250,000 on each count.

Mr. Smith’s sentencing is scheduled for August 17, 2010, at 9:30 a.m., before United States District Judge William S. Duffey, Jr.

This conspiracy of cargo theft underscores the vulnerability of the pharmaceutical supply chain and is evidence of how vulnerable the products that they consume daily are and the growing prevalence of adulterated, fraudulent and counterfeit medications.

Secure Pharma Chain Blog, endorses the concept of all members of the supply using authentication technologies to verify their inventories and chain of custody.

To learn more about pharmaceutical supply chain solutions, visit: http://www.xstreamsystems.net/.