Palm Springs man smuggled and sold illegal Viagra and Cialis for years, feds say
For years, a Palm Springs man smuggled knockoff erection drugs into the country and sold his own illegal versions of Viagra and Cialis through the mail from his condo, according to federal investigators.
Brett M. Ross has not been charged with a crime. But court documents say he told investigators he's been selling the drugs, which by federal law can be dispensed only with a prescription, for about 10 years.
A sworn affidavit from a Homeland Security Investigations special agent describes how that agency and others began investigating Ross in early 2022 after customs officers in New York seized a parcel containing 550 pills of sildenafil, the active ingredient in Viagra. It had been mailed from India and was addressed to Ross at his condo in the Twin Palms area of Palm Springs.
That seizure launched an investigation that eventually included the undercover purchase of erectile dysfunction drugs from Ross and two recent searches of his condo, where investigators say they found the drugs and items used to insert them into pills. In addition to sildenafil, court documents say, Ross sold tadalafil, the active ingredient in Cialis.
Earlier, investigators tied the seized pills to the website PalmSpringsBabyBlues.com, which had been selling blue pills called “Baby Blues” that resembled Viagra and yellow pills called “Magic Yellows” that resembled Cialis. It was also selling an item called "Oral Jelly" that appeared to be Kamini, an Indian Herbal supplement that is also used to treat erectile dysfunction. Online archives show the website had been active since at least late 2020.
Customers could order the drugs using common electronic payment applications such as Venmo and CashApp and either pick them up in person or get them mailed.
The search warrant documents detail how a Homeland Security agent used the website to correspond with someone identifying themselves as Ross, who asked if he was interested in "sex capsules."
About a month later, an FDA agent placed an order for the pills, which arrived with Ross’ name and return address. Testing of the items purchased later determined they contained sildenafil, tadalafil, and Kamini jelly.
According to the warrant, Ross also applied for a $20,000 Federal COVID-19 disaster loan for the business on three occasions in 2020. Two of the applications were denied by the Small Business Administration, which said it could not find the business in public records and the bank account Ross had listed did not appear to be associated with a business.
However, the first application for a loan, which was submitted in March 2020, was approved in June 2020 and the funds were deposited into an account belonging to Ross. He indicated on all three loan applications that the business was not involved in any illegal activity.
US Customs and Border Control also reported seizing packages containing drugs addressed to Ross three times in January and February of 2023. Following the fourth seizure, Ross was sent a certified mail notice in March 2023 informing him of the seizure and that the package appeared to contain illegal items. The combined value of the 2,200 pills seized by the agency is estimated to be about $122,000.
Yet even after that notice, Ross continued offering and selling the drugs, including to undercover agents in September and October 2023, the court documents say.
The pills were sold in blister packs of 10, with the “Baby Blues” going for $40 per pack and the “Magic Yellows” going for $60 per pack. Brand name Viagara and Cialis are typically much more expensive than that, with one dose of the former going for $93 at major retailers like Walgreens, according to Healthline.
After investigators with a search warrant came to his condo on March 4 of this year, Ross told them he purchases and uses methamphetamine and fentanyl. An investigator also saw what he believed to be meth in the home during one of the warrant searches.
In addition to pills, investigators found bulk powder. Ross told them it contained sildenafil and tadalafil and that he mixed it into a product he called "Candy Blue Bombs."
Ross has not responded to attempts by The Desert Sun to reach him for comment. The website has been replaced by a notice stating that the domain has been seized by the Department of Homeland Security and other agencies in accordance with the warrant. An Instagram page for Palm Springs Baby Blues remains up, but there do not appear to have any new posts on it in over two years.
A second Instagram page appearing to belong to Ross also remained accessible. That account contained several of the same advertisements related to the business as the first account, but none that were more recent than two years old. The latest post on both pages was a Christmas-themed one wishing people "Humpy Holidays."
Paul Albani-Burgio covers growth, development and business in the Coachella Valley. Follow him on Twitter at @albaniburgiop and email him at paul.albani-burgio@desertsun.com.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Palm Springs man smuggled and sold illegal Viagra and Cialis, feds say
