27°c A few clouds
15°c Cloudy periods
Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION
Internet pharmacy pioneer Strempler going to prison
Andrew Strempler (WAYNE GLOWACKI / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS ARCHIVES) Photo Store
Andrew Strempler, who launched Canada's first large Internet pharmacy and helped Americans afford life-saving drugs, has been sentenced to 48 months in prison.
Strempler originally faced three counts of mail fraud that carried a maximum sentence of 20 years each. He plea-bargained those charges down to the sentence handed down Wednesday in Miami, Fla.
The government sought a 57-month sentence. Strempler's counsel, Susan Bozorgi, countered with 41 months. Strempler also forfeited $300,000.
Bozorgi did not return phone or email messages. Strempler's former partner, Mark Rzepka, has also refused interview requests from the Free Press. Rzepka sold his interests in Strempler's company, Mediplan, also called RxNorth, in late 2004 or early 2005.
"It's a sad story," said Daren Jorgenson, who exited the Internet pharmacy business about five years ago. Strempler's story is of "a Mennonite kid from Manitoba who made so much money but money corrupted him," he said.
Strempler was in his mid-20s when he launched his business in 2001 out of a pharmacy he set up in Minnedosa that was on the brink of foreclosure. He saved the pharmacy by selling nicotine gum on eBay.
The business took off, with help from cheaper Canadian medications and a Canadian dollar worth only 68 cents U.S. He was soon employing hundreds of staff and selling prescription drugs for heart disease and diabetes across the U.S. He and his partners in Mediplan won the Prairie Entrepreneurs of the Year award.
Jorgenson said he once lived next door to Strempler when Strempler owned Leonard Asper's former home on Wellington Crescent and Jorgenson owned David Asper's former home.
"I told Andrew" to watch out, Jorgenson said.
When American pharmaceutical companies began limiting drug sales to Canadian pharmacies to counter Internet sales, many Internet pharmacies began sourcing their drugs overseas from legitimate pharmacies in Israel, Ireland, Great Britain, New Zealand and Australia. But Strempler began sourcing prescription drugs from places such as Dubai, where there is a greater potential for counterfeit drugs, said Jorgenson.
Strempler then removed the original labels and listed the country of origin as Canada. His fraud convictions stem from misrepresenting the country of origin on shipments of prescription drugs in 2005 and 2006.
An industry source said Internet pharmacies were worried a country-of-origin label from countries such as Greece and Turkey, where some drugs were sourced, could sow seeds of doubt in patients' minds. The signed agreement between U.S. authorities and Strempler states some drugs in shipments "were not consistent" with the name brands they were alleged to represent.
Strempler was living in Panama with his family prior to his arrest in a Miami airport last June.
Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition January 10, 2013 A5
More Business
- Back to Top
- Return to Business
More Business
(1 of 50 articles for today)
Consumers buy new, cheaper cameras instead of fixing existing ones
7:07 AM 0View Related
Poll
Most Popular Business
- Shark Club opens in citiplace
- Consumers buy new, cheaper cameras instead of fixing existing ones
- McMunn & Yates absorbs five McDiarmid locations
- Daycare-subsidy rules bad for business
- Carriers turned off by Canada's wireless law
- Mountain Equipment Co-op unveils new logo, name to appeal to urban customers
- Prairie Pulp & Paper gets foothold in U.S.
- Price of oil rises near $99 as traders await comments by US central bank chief Ben Bernanke
- Taiwan tech industry gearing up to meet growing challenge from Samsung
- Ousted founder Men's Wearhouse says dismissal comes after disagreement with company direction
- Sobeys expanding reach in Western Canada with Safeway acquisition
- McMunn & Yates absorbs five McDiarmid locations
- Shark Club opens in citiplace
- Aircraft maintenance engineer taking off
- Consumers buy new, cheaper cameras instead of fixing existing ones
- Daycare-subsidy rules bad for business
- St. Vital Centre's energy savings help managers snag BOMA awards
- Toronto condo market poses economic risk to Canada
- New owner for lumber stores
- Two CBC reporters freed after being detained in Turkey
- New owner for lumber stores
- Earls Pembina says goodbye after 18 years
- Sobeys expanding reach in Western Canada with Safeway acquisition
- Grove Pub to take over former home of Papa George's
- New rules let customers cancel phone contracts without penalty after two years
- McMunn & Yates absorbs five McDiarmid locations
- MTS to sell Allstream to Egyptian investment group, focus on Manitoba market
- Shark Club opens in citiplace
- Where is easy street? Survey of city's richest routes may surprise
- Custom-made suits no longer just for the ultra-wealthy
- Consumers buy new, cheaper cameras instead of fixing existing ones
- McMunn & Yates absorbs five McDiarmid locations
- Shark Club opens in citiplace
- Prairie Pulp & Paper gets foothold in U.S.
- Albertans look to U.S. for pipelines counsel
- Study: Wiser medication use could save US $213 billion a year in avoidable health care costs
- Transcona transformation
- Target exceeds sales goal at Canadian stores
- The $2-million question
- AP Exclusive: Inspections show more Bangladesh garment factories poorly planned and built
- Sobeys expanding reach in Western Canada with Safeway acquisition
- McMunn & Yates absorbs five McDiarmid locations
- Consumers buy new, cheaper cameras instead of fixing existing ones
- Toronto condo market poses economic risk to Canada
- Cutting edge, made-in-Manitoba tech finds buyer -- in Manitoba
- Google unveils Internet beaming balloons launched into stratosphere
- Warren Buffett -- Winnipeg-style
- Accounting merger adds and subtracts
- St. Vital Centre's energy savings help managers snag BOMA awards
- Daycare-subsidy rules bad for business
- New owner for lumber stores
- Snowbirds: It's that time of year again
- Sobeys expanding reach in Western Canada with Safeway acquisition
- Custom-made suits no longer just for the ultra-wealthy
- New rules let customers cancel phone contracts without penalty after two years
- Where is easy street? Survey of city's richest routes may surprise
- Value Partners cracks $1-B mark in assets
- McMunn & Yates absorbs five McDiarmid locations
- MTS to sell Allstream to Egyptian investment group, focus on Manitoba market
- Manitoba Movers
Ads by Google
You can comment on most stories on winnipegfreepress.com. You can also agree or disagree with other comments. All you need to do is be a Winnipeg Free Press print or e-edition subscriber to join the conversation and give your feedback.
You can comment on most stories on winnipegfreepress.com. You can also agree or disagree with other comments. All you need to do is be a Winnipeg Free Press print or e-edition subscriber to join the conversation and give your feedback.
Have Your Say
New to commenting? Check out our Frequently Asked Questions.
Have Your Say
Comments are open to Winnipeg Free Press print or e-edition subscribers only. why?
Login SubscribeHave Your Say
Comments are open to Winnipeg Free Press Subscribers only. why?
SubscribeThe Winnipeg Free Press does not necessarily endorse any of the views posted. By submitting your comment, you agree to our Terms and Conditions. These terms were revised effective April 16, 2010.