Fake Captagon meds seized in Greece

Authorities in Greece have intercepted a big shipment of fake Captagon, a medicine that used to be prescribed for narcolepsy and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

Captagon (fenethylline) was first introduced in the 1960s but is no longer produced or used for therapeutic purposes. It’s an amphetamine-based medicine, however, and counterfeiters now produce vast quantities of the drug to serve illicit markets.

23m tablets were seized in containers at the Greek port of Piraeus this week that had been shipped from Syria and were on their way to China, according to the ekathimerini.com website.

A report published by the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA) last year notes that illicit Captagon is thought to be a commonly used stimulant in the Middle East, particularly in Israel, Jordan United Arab Emirates, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria.

It notes that some media reports have linked Captagon use to “perpetrators of terrorist acts in Europe or terrorist groups based in areas of conflict in the Middle East,” including Islamic State fighters.