Gobles man sentenced for selling unapproved prescriptions, weight loss drugs from China
byKatie Sergent | News Channel 3
Thu, July 23, 2026 at 5:20 PM
UpdatedThu, July 23, 2026 at 5:23 PM
File photo of prison wire fencing. A Gobles man will spend nearly two years in federal prison for helping sell unapproved drugs imported from China, including some used for weight loss. (File/WWMT)
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. —A Gobles man will spend nearly two years in federal prison for helping sell unapproved drugs imported from China, including some used for weight loss
Brandon Piper, 35, helped carry out a scheme that brought unapproved, misbranded prescription drugs into the United States with the intent to defraud and mislead both the FDA and consumers U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Michigan
Customers bought the drugs through a Canadian website and Piper’s website. Both sites claimed the products were intended for research purposes only, but Piper and others knew customers were using them personally
Authorities say many of the drugs were falsely labeled as products of the United States, but they were actually
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The drugs included semaglutide and tirzepatide, medications that require a prescription from a licensed practitioner
“The drugs were sold without obtaining prescriptions from customers and were shipped to customers without adequate directions for use,” officials said
According to federal prosecutors, FDA-approved versions of semaglutide and tirzepatide carry a “black box warning,” the FDA’s strongest warning, because of the risk of serious or potentially life-threatening side effects, including thyroid C-cell tumors
The products sold through Piper’s operation did not include those warnings
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“Brandon Piper’s business bypassed important drug safeguards that made him a danger to his customers,” VerHey said. “By going around the prescription requirement, he made drugs available to his customers that are dangerous – and even deadly – when used improperly.”
VerHey added that Piper’s drugs lacked quality control, and could have contained “anything.”
“Put those two factors together and you have a recipe for disaster,’ VerHey said. “Because of that, my office will always treat people like Piper just like street level drug dealers.”
Mayze Nichols was also charged in connection with the scheme and is scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 15
