This morning, police raided two offices belong to the distributor of Kalo diet pills, the self-proclaimed “best-selling” diet supplementary in Thailand, after they found the illegal hunger suppressant sibutramine in the pills, which are sold widely online and at Watsons drug stores, and have been endorsed by celebrities, bloggers, and other “real users.”
At 8:30am, police hit the company’s office in Bang Phlat, where they seized 700 boxes of products worth THB1.36 million (US$420,000). At another location in Phasi Charoen, police found 268,200 empty packages — if they’d had pills in them, those would have been worth about THB182 million (US$5.64 million).
Sibutramine, the substance found in the pills in question, has been banned in several countries, with side effects ranging from headaches and asthenia to high blood pressure, heart attacks, and failed kidneys, according to Bangkok Biz News.
The raids are part of a broader crackdown on dubious supplements that began last month with a focus on the firm “Magic Skin,” which was marketing products that turned out to be little more than powdered milk.
On its website — since shut down — Kalo was advertised as a “best-selling” diet supplement, boasting that it could help you lose 9 to 15 kilos (regardless of your body weight) and could magically block the “carbs, fat, and sugar” in food from being absorbed into your body.
We’re not scientists, but feel pretty certain that most people realize the only legit road to weight loss — if a not particularly fun one — is dieting and exercise.
While Kalo is FDA approved, sibutramine had not been declared in the ingredients. Police are looking to charge the company’s CEO, a man named Jensan Techasuriyanan, as well as others involved in its production and sale.
‘Stop being fat’
Deputy Police Chief Gen. Wirachai Songmetta said yesterday he has issued a letter summoning six celebrities who have advertised Kalo diet pills including music industry sex bomb Wanida “Gybzy” Termthanaporn and former race car driver Nana Rybena.
The other four were singers and actresses Jennifer Kim, Nattapat “Pui Fai” Wipatcorntragoon, Kullanat “Numfon” Preeyawat, and Natalie Davies.
Under the slogans “Stop being fat” and “Gybzy guarantees Kalo,” the celebs could be charged with false advertising under the Food Act, which is punishable with a prison term of up to three years and/or a fine of up to THB30,000 (US$900). For posting online about the diet pills, they could face computer crime charges subject and to another another potential five-year prison term.
Police said they are also investigating whether these celebrities have been given ownership stakes in Kalo.
Today’s raid came in the wake of a Saturday autopsy report which confirmed that two Thai women had died after taking a brand of diet pills called Lyn that contained sibutramine, Morning News reported.
Police have also found the same substance in nine other weight loss supplement brands: The Eight, Calviva, S-Secret, L-Fin, Finale, Boxy Indelar, Alert Real White, Push She (Vivi), and Luk Sam Rong.
Related:
It’s just powdered milk: Police to summon top Thai superstars who endorsed fake supplements
