Russian authorities have launched a criminal investigation into the use of forged quality certificates during the distribution of a popular canine vaccine blamed for the deaths of dozens of dogs over the summer, the Prosecutor General’s Office said Tuesday.
Inspectors discovered a falsified certificate uploaded to the state electronic database for a batch of the vaccine, the prosecutor’s office said in a statement, without identifying the maker or the medication by name.
Law enforcement sources told Interfax that the investigation targeted Moscow-based pharmaceutical company Vetbiochim, which produces the widely used Multican-8 vaccine.
At least 169 dogs have reportedly died since August across Russia, primarily in the Yaroslavl region, after receiving doses of Multican-8. Authorities revealed that samples from a batch of Multican-8 contained live Aujeszky’s disease virus, which is almost universally fatal to domestic dogs.
Vetbiochim recalled several batches of Multican-8 in late August following initial reports of illness and deaths from pet owners.
In comments to the RBC news outlet on Tuesday, Vetbiochim said it was fully cooperating with law enforcement and providing all requested documentation.
“We’re not avoiding responsibility, and we’re not hiding from the public or the investigation,” Vetbiochim said.
The company said it had launched an internal audit to determine how the contaminated batch and falsified documentation were released into circulation.
“We want an objective investigation to identify those responsible and to ensure they face proper consequences. We’ll do everything we can to make that happen,” Vetbiochim said.
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