Five people from the company whose fake drug claimed five lives have been taken to south China's Guangdong Province by police for further questioning, local authorities said on Sunday.
Of the five suspects, there are two deputy factory directors in charge of technology and supply, one material buyer, one general manager, and one testing office director of the Qiqihar No. 2 Pharmaceutical Co.Ltd. in northeast China's Heilongjiang Province, the sources said.
Fourteen police officers from Guangdong Province have also returned to the provincial capital of Guangzhou after finishing a preliminary on-site investigation in Qiqihar, said the sources.
Five people died after receiving the fake Armillarisni A injection made by the Qiqihar No. 2 Pharmaceutical company.
Drug authorities in Guangdong Province reported on May 3 that patients using the injection had developed acute kidney failure symptoms, which prompted immediate investigations into the case.
The government has shut down the plant and banned the sale of all its medicines. Efforts have also been made to track down and seal up relevant drugs sold to various regions.
(Xinhua News Agency May 22, 2006)
