It began with one patient exhibiting unusual symptoms in 2006. Doctors were puzzled. When dozens of similar cases began to appear, they got worried. But it wasn’t until they found the common factor that the mystery was resolved: counterfeit cough syrup containing diethylene glycol, a poisonous chemical used in antifreeze. This fake cough syrup was manufactured in China and sold, through international brokers, to the Government of Panama to be distributed to the poor. By the time it was discovered, more than 100 people had died.
