Former executive of Taro Pharmaceutical indicted in US for price-fixing

A former sales and marketing executive of Taro Pharmaceutical Industries, Ara Aprahamian, has been indicted for price-fixing and bid-rigging, among other charges.

The Justice Department said that Aprahamian was indicted for participating in two conspiracies to fix generic drug prices between 2013 and 2015.

Bob Gage, a lawyer for Aprahamian, said that he looked forward to his day in court. “We have absolute confidence that once all the facts are brought to light Aprahamian will be proven innocent,” Gage said.

Aprahamian was previously vice president of sales at Taro, according to the Connecticut’s Office of Attorney General. The Justice Department did not respond to questions about Aprahamian’s employment.

He is also charged with lying to an FBI agent when he denied that he had spoken to a competitor about pricing.

The issue of drug pricing has become a hot one amid reports that some drugs, including some on the markets for decades, have seen their prices increase sharply.