Ranbaxy Laboratories Raided by US Officials
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www.asiabiotech.com Industry Watch India Ranbaxy Laboratories by US Officials ndian pharmaceutical company, Ranbaxy Laboratories said that the US officials had raided its American corporate offices in Princeton, New Jersey. Raghu Kochar, head Iof corporate communications for the company in India, confirmed that US officials had searched Ranbaxy’s American facilities and promised that the company would cooperate fully. But Kochar declined to say whether Ranbaxy was aware of the reason for the search or any investigation that may have prompted it, referring to a company statement that the search had come “as a surprise” and that Ranbaxy was not aware of any wrongdoing. Charles Caprariello, a spokesman for the Ranbaxy US affiliate, said officials of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration had conducted a broad search of the premises “and took a variety of documents.” “It’s been a wide dragnet — a sweep of questions — and we’ve tried to work with them in answering everything they’ve asked,” Caprariello said. A spokeswoman for the Food and Drug Administration, Catherine McDermott, said the agency could not “confirm or deny FDA involvement” in the Ranbaxy case, referring calls to the Department of Justice. A spokeswoman for the federal prosecutor’s office in Maryland — where the agency has its headquarters — said the office could not comment on pending investigations. Ranbaxy, the top Indian drug maker by sales, reported net profit of US$42 million for the October-December quarter. Its sales in the United States, where the company introduced 10 new products last year, rose 16 percent during the quarter. Fueling results was strong demand for simvastatin, Ranbaxy’s generic form of Merck’s Zocor cholesterol fighter. Ranbaxy has said it aims to be among the top five generic players in the world, with US$5 billion in annual sales by 2012. About Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd, headquartered in India, is an Contact Details: integrated, research based, international pharmaceutical Ranbaxy Laboratories Limited company producing a wide range of quality, affordable Address: Plot 90, Sector 32, generic medicines, trusted by healthcare professionals and Gurgaon -122001, patients across geographies. Ranbaxy’s continued focus Haryana, India on R&D has resulted in several approvals in developed Tel: +91 124 4135000 markets and significant progress in New Drug Discovery Fax: +91 124 4135001 Research. The company’s foray into Novel Drug Delivery URL: www.ranbaxy.com Systems has led to proprietary “platform technologies,” resulting in a number of products under development. The company is serving its customers in over 125 countries and has an expanding international portfolio of affiliates, joint ventures and alliances, ground operations in 49 countries and manufacturing operations in 9 countries. APBN • Vol. 11 • No. 4 • 2007 229.