Dubai Police have arrested three Asian men trying to promote and sell counterfeit medical products on the black market.
The Department of Economic Crime Management seized 400,000 fake medical and personal protective equipment from three villas in different locations across the emirate.
About 1,000 protective glasses, 25,000 gloves, 270 overall protective gears and 3,900 bottles were recovered.
The products bore no label of the brand or the place of manufacture.
The group tried to sell the products on WhatsApp.
The three men allegedly stored used products and recycled them on the black market.
“The department received accurate information on a number of Asian men selling medical products,” said Col Salah Bou Asiba, director of Dubai Police’s Economic Crime Department.
“The investigation team immediately collected the results from the criminal data analysis centre and verified the gang's involvement in the sale of such medical products.
“An integrated action plan was prepared to follow the gang’s movements in several areas in Dubai.”
Lt Gen Abdullah Al Marri, chief of Dubai Police, issued a warning to those taking advantage of the current conditions to sell fake medical products.
On March 29, the authorities in Ajman shut down two unlicensed factories and shops for making and selling medical face masks that did not meet health and safety standards.
The businesses were discovered during random inspections by the emirate's Department of Economic Development.
Inspectors found that the businesses were exploiting the high demand for masks, caused by the coronavirus outbreak, to make illicit profit.
The facilities were closed and the masks were seized by the Department of Control and Consumer Protection.
