Eli Lilly Sues Six Entities Over Illegal Retatrutide Sales

On August 12, Eli Lilly filed six lawsuits in California and Texas against U.S. companies it says are selling black-market versions of its experimental obesity drug retatrutide. The defendants include compounding pharmacies, medical spas and online sellers—identified as Aesthetic Envy, Astra Peptides, Legendary Peptides, Striker Pharmacy, Texas Peptides and Lone Star Peptide. Lilly alleges the sellers falsely label the product as “research-use only” while marketing it directly to consumers as a weight-loss “hack.”

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Retatrutide is an investigational glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) compound currently in Phase 3 clinical trials for obesity, type 2 diabetes and related conditions. No regulatory agency worldwide has approved the drug for human use. In June, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) warned that sales of retatrutide and other unapproved GLP-1 products are illegal and cannot be compounded. The agency also noted that many of the illicit products are manufactured abroad in facilities that have not been inspected or licensed by the FDA.

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Lilly’s chief medical officer, Dr. David A. Dr. The company has referred more than 200 individuals and entities to the FDA, the U.S. Department of Justice, state attorneys general, law-enforcement agencies and professional licensing boards, and it is urging e-commerce platforms, social-media sites, payment processors and shipping firms to block such sales.

Reuters

• “Retatrutide is being rigorously studied as part of a comprehensive clinical trial development program,” — David A. Hyman, Lilly’s chief medical officer

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• “We take the responsibility of evaluating the safety and efficacy of our investigational medicines seriously. What is being sold on the black market is not a medicine – it is entirely unverified, unapproved and not worth the risk.” — Eli Lilly

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U.S. Customs and Border Protection reported intercepting over 690 shipments—more than 31,000 units—of illicit GLP-1 drugs during fiscal year 2025. In July alone, interceptions more than doubled, with over 1,400 seizures and nearly 90,000 vials seized.

Reuters

These actions illustrate Lilly’s effort to protect patients and preserve the integrity of its clinical trials while confronting a growing illegal market for unapproved weight-loss compounds.

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