Online Pharmacies are considered as menace, being operated in violation of U.S. laws, as no medicine can be sold in U.S. without prescription. But still such sales are made online in huge quantities to many U.S. citizens, who have no prescription coverage. U.S. authorities have always taken very strict view of such online pharmacies and in same context, Mr Akhil Bansal was arrested from Philadelphia in April.

Mr Akhil belonged to a wealthy family in India and was pursuing a masters from Temple University that was to be completed in December 2005. But in April, he was arrested on the charges of helping his father supply millions of dollars worth of pharmaceutical drugs manufactured in India to Internet pharmacies, who sold those drugs online to consumers in the United States, without any prescription, in total violation of U.S. law.

He was denied bail as being foreigner and also because he was suspected of fleeing US before he could be arrested. Dollar 4 million was seized from his Bank account and also millions of pills were seized from him. If convicted he will face atleast 10 years in prison.

He has already been suspended from the University and his VISA has also been cancelled. Now he is busy studying law in Jail, so that he is able to defend himself and prove his innocence. His trial starts in February 2006. Here in India, his father is already facing extradition proceedings.

These online pharmacies are not a new thing to a Internet user, who daily receives atleast one spam email, which offers drugs at cheaper rates and includes a hard to remember temporary sub-domain link e.g. http://hjdsqw.domain.com. And in case you never received any such email, then you are too lucky !