The Circuit Court in Sunyani has sentenced an Over-The-Counter (OTC) medicine seller, Nana Agyeman Badu, to 17 years imprisonment with hard labour for selling and displaying expired medical products.
The ruling, delivered on April 29, 2025, by His Honour Sylvester Nii Okine Ablorh, follows a joint operation by the Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) and the Bono Regional Police Command.
In addition to the custodial sentence, the court imposed a fine of GHS 12,000 on the convict. Failure to pay the fine will result in an additional two-year prison term.
The case stems from a 2022 operation during which expired drugs were seized from Badu’s premises in Chiraa, located in the Bono Region. Subsequent laboratory tests confirmed the products were unfit for human consumption.
In a public statement following the conviction, the FDA described the ruling as a significant milestone in its efforts to clamp down on unsafe pharmaceutical practices across the country.
“The public is hereby advised that expired medical products are unsafe, as chemical changes in such drugs can lead to harmful side effects or treatment failure,” the Authority cautioned.
The FDA also encouraged consumers to remain alert and report suspicious products, assuring the public of continued collaboration with law enforcement and other stakeholders to rid the market of expired and unregistered drugs.
