Fake doctor arrested after injection kills elderly woman

An online drugstore owner accused of selling prescription medicines that led to a patient’s death has been arrested for illegal operation, according to prosecutors of Songjiang District.

It all began in February when a man surnamed Huang, who was pretending to be a doctor, gave an antibiotics injection to an elderly woman, which caused her to die from an allergic reaction.

After he was nabbed for illegal medical practice, he told police that he bought the bottles of antibiotic injections from a drugstore on e-commerce platform Taobao, prosecutors said.

According to clues offered by Huang, police traced and seized the store’s owner, surnamed Lu.

Investigation found he opened the store in 2010 and started to sell prescription medicines, including antibiotic injections, in 2015, even though he did not hold the required licenses. 

He managed to buy prescription medication from pharmaceutical companies by impersonating licensed retailers. 

Over three years, Huang has profited more than 200,000 yuan (US$31,235), prosecutors said.