GSK Plead Guilty For Being "Very Decent"

Earlier today GSK issued an apology to the people of China, to my knowledge this is the first time an apology has been issued from anyone at GSK - Let's face it, they have a pretty dubious history with regard to a number of their drugs causing birth defects, homicide, suicide and heart attacks. No apology has ever been given to victims of Paxil or Avandia.

The apology, which can be read in full here, comes as a result of GSK  pleading guilty and being handed down a fine of  3 billion yuan ($488.8 million) in the Changsha Intermediate People's Court in Hunan Province earlier today.

The ringleader, or mastermind behind the whole bribery network, Mark Reilly, was given a three year suspended prison sentence and, according to various media reports, will be deported from China.

The one-day trial, held in secrecy, saw a total of four years in sentencing handed down to Reilly and four other managers, Zhang Guowei, Zhao Hongyan, Liang Hong and Huang Hong, all of whom worked for GSK. According to the New York Times, all but one of the sentences was suspended.

According to the court report,  "it (the court) had taken into account that he (Reilly) had returned from Britain to face the investigators, and that he had “truthfully recounted the crimes of his employer,” meriting a relatively lenient punishment"

This must come as a kick in the teeth for Peter Humprey and his wife, Yu Yinzeng, who were jailed back in August for  trafficking 256 pieces of personal information between 2009 and 2013.

Humprey's firm, ChinaWhys, had previously been hired by GSK China to look into allegations of wrong-doing by Mark Reilly. Humphrey's son, Harvey, has maintained all along that GSK were to blame for his father's incarceration at the hands of the Chinese. This from the UK Telegraph...

"They said the allegations were untrue," said Harvey. "Then two weeks later they said actually these things did happen. My father would have changed the conditions of the investigation if he had known. He would have investigated the allegations instead of this one person. I do not think as an investigator you would have taken the risk of investigating a whistleblower before you investigated the allegations."

GSK has insisted that an initial investigation into the claims "did not find evidence to substantiate the specific allegations made in the whistleblower emails".

"When I saw my dad last Friday, I mentioned GSK once. I mentioned Reilly to him once. He expressed a very low opinion of Reilly." 

I'm kind of surprised at the leniency of the Chinese authorities. The reason, they claim, they were so lenient was because Reilly had returned to China and had “truthfully recounted the crimes of his employer” - his employer?

I'm confused, wasn't it Reilly who carried out the crimes unbeknownst to his employer, GSK?

Perfect timing for the trial too. The British press are all over the Scottish 'yes' or 'no' votes so any news that GSK have been pleading guilty to crimes committed in China will have less column inches in the British media. It would be interesting to find out who decided the date of the trial.

Late last year Glaxo CEO Andrew Witty accompanied British Prime Minister David Cameron on a "Business" trip to China.

Cameron defended GlaxoSmithKline's business practices in China calling GSK "very decent".

Let's just take a look at their apology to the people of China again to see how "very decent" their behaviour was...

"Following a comprehensive investigation by the Chinese judicial authorities, GSK China Investment Co. Ltd (GSKCI) has been identified according to Chinese law to have offered money or property to non-government personnel in order to obtain improper commercial gains, and has been found guilty of bribing non-government personnel.

Very decent?

I don't know what David Cameron's definition of the word 'decent' is but to assign it to GSK is borderline madness!

I'm in no doubt that Cameron was influential in helping Reilly escape jail time, no doubt at all.

So, will Reilly, once deported, be arrested when he sets foot back on British soil?

I guess that's a job for the UK's Serious Fraud Office who, earlier this year, announced that they would be investigating GlaxoSmithKline as a result of the Chinese allegations - well, they aren't allegations any more, Glaxo have, today, pleaded guilty.

If you think that the UK's Serious Fraud Office will be standing at Heathrow with handcuffs to arrest Reilly then you may be mistaken, if anything, it will be David Cameron and Andrew Witty that will greet Reilly with open arms... "Well done old chum, our shares are back on the rise".

Meantime, 100 or so plaintiffs in the UK face disappointment after GSK have refused to pay out compensation to them for suffering severe withdrawal reactions to the antidepressant Seroxat [known as Paxil in the US]. This, despite settling over 3,000 cases of Paxil addiction in the US.

Welcome to Britain folks!



Bob Fiddaman.



Back stories.

Cronyism, Chinese Style

Will Cameron Call off the GSK Hounds?

Witty Plays Down China Scandal

Witty Witty Bang Wang. The Glaxo Gangbang...Allegedly

Andrew Witty... I know narrrrrrrrthing

葛兰素史克公司 腐败 For Researching Chinagate

Glaxo's Private Investigator Arrested

Book Your Holidays With GSK Travel

Andrew Witty... I know narrrrrrrrthing - Part II

Hammer to Fall on GSK's Chinese Executives

GSK CHINA - Bribery was Rife 13 Years Ago

Glaxo - The Sex Tape Scandal

Peter Humphrey's 2012 Presentation - Pharma Bribery

GSK's Chinese Whispers and David Cameron 

“GSK were really cagey", Claims Whitehall Official.

Glaxo Hire Ropes & Gray to Delve Into its Chinese Operations.

GSK's Chinese Whispers and David Cameron

News today that Peter Humphrey's trial is to be held behind closed doors should come as no surprise to those that have been following GSK's Chinagate with interest. [GSK-linked investigators Peter Humphrey and Yu Yingzeng face secret trial]

Peter Humphrey and his wife, Yu Yingzeng, were arrested by Chinese authorities last year for illegally buying and selling private information.

Just a few months previous to Humphrey's arrest he was hired by GlaxoSmithKline  to do some background searches on the person they believed to be a whistleblower. Vivian Shi, GlaxoSmithKline's head of government affairs in China was the subject of Humphrey's investigation, however, he was unable to find anything that pointed the finger of blame toward Shi.

Humphrey was then told that top executives at GlaxoSmithKline had received a series of emails and a video recording of  GSK's Mark Reilly who, at the time, was General Manager of GSK China.

Reilly was later detained and charged by Chinese authorities and stands accused bribery and fraud in connection with a scheme to boost drug sales.

Today's South China Morning Post is reporting...

"US consular officials had been informed on Wednesday when visiting Yu that they would not be able to attend the trial, and that the decision to keep the trial closed had been made on the grounds of privacy, according to the couple’s family friends, who declined to be identified because of the apparent sensitivity of the case."

Two schools of thought here.

1. Humphrey has plea bargained in the hope of a lesser sentence or fine.

2. British Prime Minister David Cameron and Glaxo CEO Andrew Witty have used their influence on the Chinese Prime Minister, Li Keqiang.

Point 1 is feasible given that Humphrey knows all about pharmaceutical fraud and probably would have seen more allegations of the whistleblower than the emails GSK have admitted to.

Point 2 is also feasible when we look at David Cameron's recent trip to China.

Here's an article published around the time of Cameron's visit to China. [It's worthy to note that Andrew Witty also accompanied Cameron on this 'business' trip]

David Cameron has risked angering the Chinese government by launching a robust defence of GlaxoSmithKline  as the UK drug company steps up its battle to save its reputation in the country.

GSK is facing prosecution from Chinese authorities over allegations of bribery, while dozens of its local employees and a UK man it used as a corporate investigator remain in detention.

The prime minister gave public backing to the company on Tuesday during his three-day trade mission to China . He told reporters in Shanghai: "They are a very important, very decent and strong British business that is a long-term investor in China."

Mr Cameron raised the GSK case with Li Keqiang, the Chinese premier, during talks in Beijing on Monday, as investigators probe allegations the company bribed local doctors to sell GSK's medicines.

Andrew Witty, GSK chief executive, is part of a business delegation accompanying Mr Cameron in China, signalling an intensification of efforts to resolve the dispute.

During this visit Peter Humphrey's son, Harvey, called on Andrew Witty to raise his father’s case while in China for high-level meetings.

“My father was working for GSK. I know Andrew Witty is in China this week and I hope he can take a few minutes to raise my father’s case,” Harvey, 18, a university student now in London, told the Financial Times. “I understand everything is complicated in China but it seems my parents are paying a big price.”

Harvey Humphrey is right, his parents are wrapped up in something quite complicated here.

Question is, did Andrew Witty, or indeed, David Cameron influence  Li Keqiang, the Chinese premier?

I guess we shall have to wait and see what the outcome is of the trial of Peter Humphrey and his wife, Yu Yingzeng is.

Personally, I hope Humphrey took option 1 and spilled the beans on GSK in an effort to receive a lesser sentence from the Chinese authorities.

The trial is set for Aug 7.

Bob Fiddaman.

Back Stories.

Glaxo - The Sex Tape Scandal

GSK's Private Investigator [The Video]

Peter Humphrey's 2012 Presentation - Pharma Bribery

Will Cameron Call off the GSK Hounds?

The South China Morning Post is reporting that Britain's Serious Fraud Office plans to prosecute or fine GlaxoSmithKline for engaging in bribery in China.

For those that don't know, GlaxoSmithKline were implicated in a series of bribery allegations last year in China. The Chinese government accused British pharmaceutical giant, Glaxo of paying almost $500 million in bribes, mainly to doctors who prescribed its products.

The allegations have been played down by Glaxo chief, Andrew Witty, who last year claimed, that there are control mechanisms in place to prevent bribery and other forms of corruption, but that the methods these individuals used “would have been difficult to find using our controls.”

The allegations also claim that Glaxo reps were trained to offer sexual services to Dr's in an effort to get them to prescribe more drugs. China’s official news wire, Xinhua, last year quoted a 35-year-old female “medical representative” who reportedly worked for a GSK regional sales manager named only as Mr Li.

The woman, named as Ms Wang, said “some executives gave clear directives to the sales department to offer bribes to doctors with money or opportunities to attend academic conferences.”

Ms Wang said she would even go so far as fulfilling some doctors’ “sexual desires” in order to “meet their needs” and persuade them to prescribe more drugs.

Furthermore, it's been alleged that Glaxo reps organised all expenses paid trips for Chinese doctors to tour the scenic river town of Guilin, China's most picturesque region which has long been one of the world's most famous travel destinations.

It's also alleged that Chinese healthcare professionals were also sent to other exotic destinations such as Hungary and Greece in an effort to get them to prescribe Botox, best known for its ability to combat crow's feet and other facial wrinkles. Botox has another 26 treatable indications which include chronic migraines,  uncontrollable blinking and overactive bladders, ironically, losing control of your bladder is one of the side effects associated with Botox.

It will be interesting to see how this unfolds. Personally, I don't think the British government or fraud squad will intervene. Witty is a close friend of British PM, David Cameron and his leverage to pull GSK out of the UK should persuade Cameron to call off the hounds.

Bob Fiddaman

Glaxo Accused of Offloading Contaminated Vaccines to Third World

An article by investigative journalist Christina England is set to cause a stir with UK government officials and GlaxoSmithKline after it has been alleged that Glaxo's recent 'gesture' to offer vaccines to third world countries at a reduced cost is nothing more than a smokescreen to offload a Rotarix vaccine that has been contaminated by a pig virus. Furthermore, writes Christina England, "What GlaxoSmithKline are actually offering, are vaccines at a reduced price to the third world because the take up has been so low in the Western world due to reduced confidence in the vaccine."

Christina points to a recent article in The Times newspaper where it was reported that the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization [GAVI] have linked up with GlaxoSmithKline to sell cheap, left over vaccines.

In 2010 the Centres for Disease Control [CDC] issued the following warning regarding Rotarix.

This is an official
CDC HEALTH ALERT

‘Distributed via Health Alert Network
Monday, March 22, 2010, 15:54 EDT (03:54 PM EDT)
CDCHAN-00311-2010-03-22-ALT-N
Recommendation to Temporarily Suspend Usage of GlaxoSmithKline Rotarix (Rotavirus) Vaccine

Summary

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has learned that DNA from porcine circovirus type 1 (PCV1), a virus not known to cause disease in humans, is present in the Rotarix vaccine. All available evidence indicates that there has been no increased risk to patients who have received this vaccine. PCV1 is not known to cause any disease in animals or humans; therefore, it has not been routinely tested for in vaccine development. Rotarix has been extensively studied, before and after approval, and found to have an excellent safety record (i.e., no unusual adverse events). However, FDA is recommending that healthcare practitioners temporarily suspend usage of the Rotarix vaccine for rotavirus immunization in the United States while the agency learns more about the detection of components of the virus found in the vaccine.’

The alert finished by adding,

‘The recommendations detailed above are for the United States, where there is less rotavirus disease and an alternative vaccine is available. Other countries may decide to continue vaccinating with Rotarix while more information becomes known. Available evidence suggests that the benefits of continued use of Rotarix in countries where rotavirus disease is common and severe far outweigh any potential risk from the vaccine.

Glaxo's recent show of goodwill was reported globally, their Chief Executive, Andrew Witty, proudly boasted that Glaxo's decision to offer the vaccine at a ‘heavily’ reduced cost as ‘not a gimmick or one off philanthropic gesture but part of a concerted strategy to change their business model’. adding that ‘that the people must come before profits’.

Somebody hand me a Paxil.

Christina England:

"Witty went to explain how diarrhea is the largest killer of the under 5′s in the third world and that the new pricing structure is to allow the vaccine to be sold to the poorest nations at a fraction of the price. He said that government aid funding alone would never meet the funding needs of these people.

"All very noble of them considering that Rotarix vaccine was suspended around the world last year because it contained the DNA from pigs in it. What GlaxoSmithKline are actually offering, are vaccines at a reduced price to the third world because the take up has been so low in the Western world due to reduced confidence in the vaccine."

Where's my Alli?

It takes an unpaid investigative journalist like Christina England to report on such matters, none of the mainstream newspapers have picked up on this.

Other articles/documents that point to the contamination of Glaxo's vaccine can be found here:

http://www.sochinf.cl/sitio/templates/sochinf2008/documentos/alerta_rotarix.pdf

http://www.fiercepharmamanufacturing.com/story/pig-virus-halts-gsk-rotarix-use/2010-03-23

http://www.webmd.boots.com/children/default.htm

http://www.infowars.com/vaccine-contamination-pig-virus-dna-found-in-rotarix/

http://www.truthistreason.net/rotarix-rotavirus-vaccine-contaminated-with-pig-virus

http://www.ageofautism.com/2010/04/vaccine-contamination-pig-virus-dna-found-in-rotarix.html

And here you can read studies on the rotavirus vaccine shedding and its potential transmission within households including immunocompromised individuals are needed to better define the potential risks and benefits of vaccination. [LINK]

Christina's full article can be read HERE.

GlaxoSmithKline's corporate motto is:

DO MORE
FEEL BETTER
LIVE LONGER

Fid

Read the new book, The Evidence, However, Is Clear...The Seroxat Scandal

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