Foz de Yguazú records a 2,069% surge in seizures of weight-loss drugs

The seizure of weight-loss medicines has surged in Foz de Yguazú, the Brazilian city on the border with Paraguay. Brazil’s Federal Revenue Service recorded 162,254 confiscated units by Sept. 3, compared with 7,479 ampoules seized between May and December 2025, a reported increase of 2,069 percent.

The confiscated products lacked authorization from Brazil’s health authorities and may not have been transported under suitable storage conditions. Tirzepatide-based medicines require continuous refrigeration, raising concern over the safety of products kept outside the required conditions.

Brazilian authorities have also detected suspected counterfeit versions of the medicines. Their composition cannot be confirmed, according to the report. Prosecutors and police searched several pharmacies and a warehouse in Ciudad del Este on Wednesday and Thursday, finding signs that pointed to the counterfeiting and sale of the drugs.

Agents found products hidden in shoes, vehicle tires and other spaces inside vehicles and personal belongings. Investigators say the border with Paraguay has become one of the main routes for bringing tirzepatide-based medicines into Brazil.

The Triple Frontier, particularly the Foz de Yguazú area, is considered a strategic entry point. Once inside Brazil, the medicines are moved mainly along roads and distributed to major urban centers, including São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. Some of those routes overlap with logistics corridors used by groups involved in drug and weapons trafficking.