A New York City federal court charged physician Somsri Ratanaprasatporn, MD, three pharmacists and four others with a $24 million scheme illegally distributing more than 1.2 million oxycodone pills, the U.S. Justice Department said October 12.
Between December 2018 and October 2022, the defendants allegedly operated a drug distribution ring out of a medical practice in New York City. They unlawfully distributed more than 11,000 prescriptions for oxycodone – more than 1.2 million oxycodone pills – worth at least $24 million.
Pediatrician and general practitioner Dr. Ratanaprasatporn issued the prescriptions, and the three pharmacists filled the prescriptions in pharmacies in Brooklyn and Staten Island.
The indictment included Dr. Ratanaprasatporn's office manager Leticia Smith; pharmacists Bassam Amin, Omar Elsayed, and Yousef Ennab, PharmD; and Michael Kent, Anthony Mathis and Raymond Walker. They were charged with conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute oxycodone.
All eight were arrested and are scheduled to be arraigned October 12. They face up to 20 years of imprisonment.