Medical equipment is being "nicked" (stolen) from a number of National Health Service hospitals in the UK. Endoscopes and ultrasound equipment are among the items the thieves have been targeting.

The thefts continue and the crooks remain at large. One source that is investigating these crimes (who has talked to DOTmed News and wishes to remain anonymous for now) believes that one destination for this equipment very well may be Romania. However, a police source in the UK also said the "hot" equipment could be channeled to anywhere in Eastern Europe, Africa or in the developing world.

BBC journalists are doing their own investigation and have asked DOTmed to help them. They would like to hear from any DOTmed users who have knowledge or information about the market for stolen medical equipment, particularly in Romania.

If you've been victimized or are aware of any suspicious activity, please contact DOTmed so that we can forward to BBC. They, and DOTmed, will protect your confidentiality if you wish to remain anonymous.

We encourage you to "Help catch the crooks" by using this link to tell us anything you might know about this stolen equipment, or provide information about this issue in general. Keeping the used medical equipment business clean is in the best interests of all of us. If you can shed some light on this specific crime, or know of any similar incidents in Europe or the U.S., please let us know. We need to police our own industry for our own good.

There is also a posting in our Honest/Dishonest Forum about this same issue.

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