This is interesting. I’m not fond of FedEx, they’re big union busters. So it wouldn’t break my heart to see them get slammed, but they do have a point:
SAN FRANCISCO — FedEX has been indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of shipping powerful prescription drugs for illegal online pharmacies, the latest major company targeted by federal law enforcement for playing a part in the proliferation of such drugs on the black market.
The indictment charges the world’s largest cargo company with conspiracy to distribute controlled substances and distribution of misbranded drugs, and it moves to force the company to forfeit at least $820 million linked to the proceeds from such illicit shipments.
Federal prosecutors accused FedEx of ignoring warnings for nearly a decade from Congress, the DEA and other federal agencies that underground online pharmacies were using its shipping services to illegally distribute prescription drugs such as oxycodone and hydrocodone.
FedEx, the indictment alleges, “departed from its usual business practices” to accommodate the illegal online drug operations, despite pressure to reform.
The indictment is part of a growing campaign against prescription drug abuse, including a summit on the topic held in the Bay Area in May. In another case brought by San Francisco U.S. Attorney Melinda Haag, United Parcel Service last year settled similar allegations, agreeing to pay $40 million after being linked to the sales of shipping prescription drugs sold by illegal online pharmacies.
FedEx vowed to fight the charges.
“FedEx is innocent of the charges,” the company said in a statement. “We will plead not guilty. We will defend against this attack on the integrity and good name of FedEx and its employees.”
FedEx has said in the past that it would not settle because the company does not believe it has committed any wrongdoing, arguing that it should not be held responsible for the contents of tens of millions of packages it regularly ships. FedEx has disclosed in regulatory filings that it has been a target of a grand jury investigation for at least the past four years.
The indictment, however, alleges that FedEx for years was aware that two major illegal online pharmacies, the Chhabra-Smoley organization and Superior Drugs, were using the company to ship prescription drugs illegally. Federal prosecutors allege FedEx approved the shipping policies at top management levels, including chief financial officer and the senior vice president of sales.
This story is more about how capitalism functions than it is about who the drug dealers are. FedEx is in business of delivering freight for profit. Arms manufacturers are in the business of selling guns for profit. Smith and Wesson doesn’t care any more about who buys their weapons of death then FedEx does about what freight they deliver. As long as there’s a profit to be made. Only the naïve would believe that the guns sold by Smith and Wesson don’t end up in the hands of murderers or worse. Or that the company doesn’t know anything about that. Which is the defense that FedEx is offering for their predicament. Free market capitalism makes beasts of us all.
This isn’t about oxycodone. This is big pharma/DOJ trying to shut down alternative distribution for ALL prescription drugs, such as cheaper drugs from Canada, India, etc. They’ll go after FedEx for Oxycodone, but what they’re really interested in is all of it. Everything. Heart medications, penis pills, cholesterol pills, antipsychotics. Doubtless they shouldn’t be shipping addictive painkillers–not that they would necessarily know what they’re shipping in the first place. But don’t be fooled. This is lickspittle ankle grabber Eric Holder’s DOJ working hand-in-glove with big Pharma.