SMUGGLED VIAGRA IS TARGETED BY DRUGS TEAM

A SPECIAL inquiry team, dubbed the V-men, has been set up by the Medicines
Control Agency to investigate black-market trading in Viagra, the
anti-impotence drug.

Health officials have been alarmed that the drug, which is not licensed in
this country, is being offered for sale on the Internet, mail-order
advertisements or direct mailshots.

Doctors in private clinics have also reported that they are being offered
supplies of Viagra anonymously over the telephone at inflated black market
prices. There are fears that the publicity surrounding the drug, which is
said to turn men of 60 into sexual athletes, has created huge demand from
men who wish to use it recreationally.

The inquiry unit, established within the agency's enforcement division, aims
to stamp out illegal activity while sales are still in their infancy.
Initially they are looking at 15 separate cases.

Like the FBI's G-men, who upheld Prohibition in America, the new force has
the power to seize contraband Viagra and prosecute offenders. Under the 1969
Medicines Act, selling Viagra is a criminal offence punishable by a two-year
prison sentence or an unlimited fine. Doctors have repeatedly said that
Viagra is not a sex-aid but a medicine which can be dangerous if taken
without proper precautions. Several deaths have already been reported in the
United States.

Viagra has received FDA approval in America. But it has not yet licensed
here or anywhere else in the European Union. It can only be sold or supplied
on a "named patient" basis to fulfil the needs of an individual patient. A
doctor prescribing a drug in these circumstances has to take personal
responsibility for the outcome.

A spokeswoman for the Medicines Control Agency said that if wholesalers'
advertisements can be accessed in Britain they are breaking the law. She
said: "We need to work with the companies to achieve a consensus. We are
going to try to persuade first rather than leap into instant prosecutions."

Private clinics are reporting approaches from black marketeers looking to
make a swift profit. Matt O'Neill, general manager of the United Kingdom
Men's Clinics, based in Manchester, said that his company was approached
over the telephone by a man offering to sell 3,000 tablets and asked if they
were interested.

Mr O'Neill said: "Everyone at the clinic was absolutely staggered by the
telephone call. The drug seems to be becoming much too freely available and
this makes it open to abuse. It does have the potential to be a recreational
drug. I have even heard of Viagra described a 'popper'."

Dr Peter Fink, secretary of Manchester GPs representative council, said: "If
people are going to buy Viagra they should be aware they are taking a risk."

Checked-by: "Rolf Ernst"