Herbalist 'put customers at risk'

Bao Ji Zhang. Photo / Dean Purcell

A man is awaiting sentence after being found guilty of selling Chinese herbal medicine that contained undeclared prescription drugs - including an active ingredient of Viagra.

Bao Ji Zhang, 61, was found guilty of 30 breaches of the Medicines Act, including possession of prescription drugs and sale of a new medicine without the consent of the Minister of Health.

One woman, who has name suppression, bought diet pills from Zhang's store, at Auckland's Victoria Park markets, that contained the prescription drug Sibutramine, which can be used to treat very overweight patients and can be unsafe when combined with some other medicines.

After taking the pills, she suffered symptoms which included a racing heart and overheating. She stopped taking them and complained to authorities, who had the capsules tested.

Zhang was to have been sentenced at the Auckland District Court yesterday but it was adjourned to allow him a chance to provide documents proving his ability to pay a fine which is a possible final sentence.

Crown prosecutor Anna Adams told the court that Zhang was running a large-scale commercial operation that ran a risk to public safety and sought a prison term on behalf of the Ministry of Health.

She said Zhang did not accept his offending and showed no remorse.

Consumers had relied on medicines bought from Zhang because of claims he had made.

She said there was also a significant risk to people who obtained prescription drugs without consent of their doctors when they had been misrepresented as herbal products.

Ministry of Health compliance manager Derek Fitzgerald gave evidence during Zhang's 11-day defended hearing. He told of discovering Sildenafil, the active ingredient in Viagra, in a number of products seized from the Victoria Health Centre and Zhang's East Auckland house.

Mr Fitzgerald said it wasn't safe to take Sildenafil with certain medical conditions, and the maximum recommended dose was 100mg over 24 hours. Products taken from Zhang's shop contained up to 120mg of Sildenafil.

Zhang said it was impossible people in China making herbal products were putting Western medicines in them.

In relation to the products that contained Sildenafil it was his view the drug was similar to the Chinese herb product ginseng.

In a statement to the Herald Mr Fitzgerald said: "Our investigation found that the ostensibly herbal products being sold by Mr Bao Ji Zhang either contained undeclared prescription medicines or were unapproved medicines, whose safety, efficacy and quality had not been evaluated."

He said Mr Zhang put the public's health at risk by commercially dealing with medicines outside the regulatory system.

"The products were unapproved, of dubious quality and, in some cases, were being sold as Chinese herbal medicines, despite having been adulterated with Western prescription medicines."