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A warehouse raid in a Northampton industrial estate has led to the world’s largest ever seizure of illegal unlicensed weight loss jabs, the MHRA has said.  

The medicines regulator said its criminal enforcement unit (CEU) had “dismantled” the “major illicit manufacturing facility” in what it described as the first raid of its kind and the “largest single ever seizure of trafficked weight loss medicines ever recorded by a law enforcement agency worldwide”.  

The MHRA told P3pharmacy there have been “no arrests as yet”. 

Supported by Northamptonshire Police, the CEU officers seized “tens of thousands of empty weight loss pens ready to be filled” along with raw chemical ingredients and over 2,000 unlicensed pens containing retratutide and tirzepatide. 

The seized products had an estimated street value of over £250,000.

The two-day search operation also recovered £20,000 in cash suspected to be linked to trafficking as well as “large amounts of sophisticated packaging and manufacturing equipment. 

CEU head Andy Morling said the seizure “shows the lengths these criminals will go to for profit”. 

“Taking out the first illicit weight loss medicine manufacturing facility in the UK is a landmark result for the MHRA and a major blow to the illegal trade,” he said as he revealed “tens of thousands of potentially fatal products” have been blocked from entering circulation. 

Mr Morling urged caution when buying medicines online, adding: “Prescription medicines should only be obtained from a registered pharmacy against a prescription issued by a healthcare professional.”

Health secretary Wes Streeting said: “This is a victory in the fight against the shameless criminals who are putting lives at risk by peddling dangerous and illegal weight loss jabs to make a quick buck.

“these unregulated products, made with no regard for safety or quality, posed a major risk to unwitting customers. 

“My message is clear: don’t buy weight loss medications from unregulated sources.

“Safe, appropriate, licensed obesity drugs can greatly benefit those in need if taken under medical supervision, and I urge people to only purchase and use them with the approval and oversight of medics and pharmacists.”

Related: MHRA seizes £17m of drugs and shuts down 367 websites

MHRA updates guidance on anti-obesity jabs amid safety concerns 

Value of illegal medicines seized by MHRA rises by a third