FSA welcomes successful council prosecution

DNP is an industrial chemical and it is illegal to sell it for human consumption.

Shaun Corrigan was given a nine-month custodial sentence, suspended for 12 months, 180 hours unpaid work, and was disqualified from being a director of a company for two years after selling the toxic drug.

An investigation led by Allerdale Borough Council, with support from the FSA’s National Food Crime Unit and the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), resulted in a raid on Shaun Corrigan’s business premises in Wigton on 5 September 2017. Officers found DNP in powdered and tablet form and the council also seized equipment capable of producing the DNP tablets.

Mr Corrigan pleaded guilty to the charge of offering for sale the substance called 2,4 Dinitrophenol (DNP) as a ‘fat burner’ and weight-loss drug at Carlisle Magistrates Court on 29 September 2018. On 6 February 2019, a jury at Carlisle Magistrates Court, found Enhanced Athlete Europe Limited, a company for which Mr Corrigan was the sole director, guilty of placing an unsafe food product on to the market. The company was sentenced to a £100,000 fine, plus costs. 

Reaction

Speaking after the case, Allerdale Borough Councillor Carni McCarron-Holmes, Executive member with responsibility for Housing, Health and Wellbeing, praised the work of officers saying: “This has been a really meticulous investigation by Council officers and I’m really pleased that it has resulted in a guilty plea by Mr Corrigan, and a successful prosecution of Enhanced Athlete Europe Ltd. People need to be aware of the dangers associated with DNP and drugs that can be bought over the internet.”

Darren Davies, Head of the National Food Crime Unit, added: “DNP is a toxic chemical and the danger posed by this substance, with a very real risk of death, needs to be highlighted. It is completely irresponsible and unforgivable to be selling this item for human consumption. We were pleased to work with Allerdale Council and the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency to secure this successful prosecution.” 

What is DNP?

DNP is poisonous to humans and those taking it can experience: nausea, vomiting, restlessness, flushed skin, sweating, dizziness, headaches, rapid breathing and an irregular heartbeat. Since 2007, at least 25 people in the UK have died as a result of taking it. 

More information about DNP, and what to do if you suspect someone is selling it for human consumption, can be found on our website.