ANP
News from the NOS•today, 15:51
Dutch and Belgian police have rolled up an illegal drug trade against the feline crown. According to the Belgian broadcaster VRT House searches were carried out by officers in Lier, Riemst and Bruges and in the Netherlands and six people were arrested.
It is a medicine for the treatment of a form of the coronavirus in cats. The drug costs around 3,000 euros and was offered through Facebook.
The drug is believed to come from China or Hong Kong and cannot be marketed here because it has not been approved by the drug authorities. According to the Belgian prosecutor, therefore, there is an illegal trade, which could have involved several hundred thousand euros.
Facebook group
According to the VRT, a 32-year-old man and a 43-year-old woman from Lier, in the province of Antwerp, are likely behind the deal. They are among the six suspects arrested. The two offered a drug online called GS-441524, which is similar to the remdesivir virus inhibitor, which was advertised on the alternative circuit as a means of covid-19.
According to the OM, the two ran a Facebook group for owners whose cats have severe feline infectious peritonitis (FIP) disease. FIP is one of the coronaviruses and there is no cure. Especially cats with low stamina can become seriously ill and often do not survive an infection.
According to the VRT, the two would have shipped the medicine under the heading food supplements or cosmetics.
