Swiss Serono pleads guilty in AIDS drug marketing scheme

AFP, December, 2005

WASHINGTON (AFP) — Serono Laboratories Inc., the US subsidiary of Swiss pharmaceutical group Serono SA, pleaded guilty and was sentenced on US criminal charges over the illegal marketing of its AIDS drug Serostim.

The Justice Department announced the plea and sentencing, which settles an agreement announced in October between the US government and the Swiss group.

Under its terms, Serono and its US subsidiaries agreed to pay 704 million dollars to settle criminal and civil allegations of fraud to boost sales of a Serostim for AIDS patients.

Following Serono's plea, a federal judge ordered Serono to pay a 137 million dollar criminal fine. The company will also pay 567 million dollars to settle its civil liabilities.

The settlement followed a probe of how Serono was marketing Serostim, which is used to treat AIDS wasting, a condition ...