Portuguese authorities have arrested an endocrinologist accused of issuing diabetes medication to people who did not suffer from the disease, allowing them to obtain subsidised treatments meant strictly for patients with type 2 diabetes. According to the Judicial Police (PJ), the prescriptions were issued solely for weight-loss purposes.

The investigation, which follows reporting by CNN Portugal, centres on Dr Graça Vargas. She is said to have prescribed more than 65,000 packages of medicines such as Ozempic, Victoza, and Trulicity to 1,914 people, making her the country’s largest prescriber of these drugs.

Police say the scheme relied on presenting healthy clients as diabetic to qualify for state reimbursement — a subsidy that can reach 95% of the medication’s cost for genuine patients.

The PJ states that the suspected crimes include qualified fraud and computer falsification, as the scheme required the introduction of false data into the national prescription software.

Authorities estimate the financial damage to the Portuguese state at around three million euros, stemming from fraudulently obtained public co-payments.

During “Operation Obélix”, investigators gathered strong indications of the involvement of two doctors, a lawyer, and a medical clinic.

Search warrants were executed at the suspects’ homes, a law office, a healthcare facility, two companies in Albufeira and Funchal, believed to be front operations, and accounting offices in Santa Maria da Feira and Lousada.

The case is also linked to a separate tax-fraud investigation involving the same group, conducted by the Tax Authority and coordinated with the Judiciary Police.

Forty officers took part in the operation across Porto, Vila Nova de Gaia, Lousada, Santa Maria da Feira, Albufeira and Funchal. The detained doctor will now appear before a judge for an initial hearing, where precautionary measures will be determined.

The inquiry is being led by the Regional Public Prosecutor’s Office in Porto.