Bought This 'Made-In-Japan' Weight Loss Pen Recently? It's Fake And Was Made In Gurgaon

A man accused of manufacturing counterfeit Mounjaro, a popular diabetes and weight loss drug, out of a flat in Gurugram had also been producing a fake tirzepatide-based injection branded as ‘Toneup’, making it look like a Japanese product to avoid detection.

Avi Sharma (32), the alleged mastermind, attempted to introduce and sell his product to a few individuals in Delhi’s Bhagirath Palace, a well-known wholesale drug and medicine market. Though no one purchased anything from him there, 22 injections labelled ‘Toneup’ were recalled from customers in cities like Delhi and Hyderabad.

A Times of India report quoted officials as saying that no pharma company by the name of ‘Toneup’ was found to exist in Japan. “There is no brand in Japan called Toneup.

He was labelling it to make it look like a Japanese brand. These injections were never tested,” the report quoted Gurugram’s Drug Control Officer Amandeep Chauhan as saying.

Avi Sharma has been arrested and is currently in judicial custody.

The Fake Mounjaro

From colour dissimilarity to typographical errors, the conspicuous differences in the packaging of counterfeit Mounjaro injections had recently led the Drugs Control Office in Gurugram to crack down on the illicit sale and production of the counterfeit Mounjaro running out the a flat in Gurugram.

According to Amandeep Chauhan, the accused sourced raw materials from China through the popular e-commerce website ‘Alibaba’.

“Avi Sharma was manufacturing fake Mounjaro and had developed a prototype under his own brand, ‘Toneup’, which is not approved by either the Government of India or the Haryana government. After this information came to light, we issued an advisory warning that anyone possessing the tirzepatide injection under the Toneup brand should not use it. Besides, it is not even sterile.” Chauhan said.

The Toneup Scam

He noted that it seems the product was not widely distributed, with only a few injections having been sold. The department has sought details from IndiaMART, where Sharma allegedly listed his products.

“Sharma had obtained leads through IndiaMART. We issued a notice to the platform, and they are expected to provide detailed information about the leads he acquired by Monday or Tuesday. From what we know, he was successful with only about 3-4 leads. We have already recalled the product from there, and four injections have been returned to our custody, while 16 more are likely to come back on Monday.”

“Six injections which had gone to Hyderabad have also been traced, and we have initiated the process for their recall, which includes informing our counterparts (drug control authorities) there that the counterfeit injections should be seized,” he said.

Chauhan said that the counterfeit Toneup injection was also a form of tirzepatide. Recently, 262 fake Mounjaro injections were recovered from Sharma.

“He had purchased two Mounjaro injections on prescription from a pharmacy. After obtaining these, he replicated the packaging, including the outer carton and labels,” he explained, adding that the individual who made the carton and labels for Sharma is now a witness in the case.

“That person, who is Gurugram-based, said Sharma told him that he has his pharma unit,” he said.

Before his arrest, Sharma met with individuals in Bhagirath Palace to pitch his injection but did not manage to sell anything; he only provided pricing for his counterfeit product, Chauhan said.

“During the investigation, we also met these persons, and they have been made witnesses. The accused had told them that he had a valid drug license,” he said.

How The Fakes Were Identified

Earlier, in Gurugram, the officials had carried out a raid on April 18 and seized fake Mounjaro (tirzepatide) injections worth 70 lakh from a vehicle in DLF Phase 4.

Chauhan had recently said the team compared the spurious sample against the original one and found that the boxes of the fake injection had different shades of blue and red. He had also said that there were glaring typographical errors in the fake versions compared to the original one.

“While both boxes have an illustration of an injection pen, it is clear and bright on the original one, but blurred, dark, and shorter on the fake version,” Chauhan had said.

During a follow-up probe, the team had raided a flat in Gurugram’s Sector 62 where the injections were allegedly prepared by mixing water with raw drugs.

Police first arrested a deliveryman from DLF Phase 4. Later, Avi Sharma was also taken into custody.

An official had earlier said that Sharma began production of the counterfeit injections to earn more money since he wasn’t generating much revenue from his previous venture.

Before running his fake operation, Sharma worked at his father’s firm for some time till 2016, after completing his graduation.

American pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly, the manufacturer of Mounjaro, recently reacted to the seizure.

“We have been made aware of a recent development in relation to the seizure of suspicious and counterfeit products that allegedly carry our product brand name Mounjaro (tirzepatide)…Lilly takes patient safety extremely seriously and welcomes regulatory authorities’ action against illicit medicines,” said an Eli Lilly and Company spokesperson in India.

Ely Lily launched Mounjaro (Tirzepatide) in India in 2025, primarily aimed at treating type 2 diabetes and obesity, and the injection became popular in the months after launch.

With PTI inputs