Doctors among 49 people who funneled opioids in Texas pill mill, authorities allege
Two doctors and five pharmacists are among 49 people who federal law enforcement authorities in Dallas publicly alleged last week had participated in an $18 million pill mill scheme.
The suspects were charged in U.S. District Court with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute controlled substances. Forty of the defendants were arrested in the last full week in September, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Texas said.
The DEA Dallas Field Division’s Fort Worth office conducted the investigation.
The final arrested defendant made her initial appearance in U.S. District Court on Thursday.
“By funneling addictive opioids onto our streets, these medical professionals violated both the Hippocratic oath and federal law — causing harm rather than healing, hurt rather than hope,” U.S. Attorney Erin Nealy Cox wrote in a statement. “This 49-defendant case represents a significant step in the fight against drug diversion in North Texas, and we appreciate DEA’s commitment to ensuring that all pill mill doctors and conspirators are investigated and shut down.”
Dr. Caesar Capistrano, 61, and Dr. Tameka Noel, 36, wrote prescriptions for hydrocodone, oxycodone, alprazolam, carisoprodol, zolpidem, phentermine and promethazine with codeine knowing that the drugs would be diverted to the street for illicit use, according to a criminal complaint.
Capistrano and Noel were assisted by a clinic manager, Shirley Williams, 48. They used a network of recruiters to enlist “patients” from the community and homeless shelters, the complaint alleged.
Recruiters paid each “patient” a fee, usually $50 to $200, to obtain prescriptions from Capistrano and Noel. The recruiters, who paid the clinic based in part on the amount of drugs prescribed, then filled the prescriptions at complicit pharmacies and diverted the drugs for resale on the street, the U.S. Attorney’s Office alleged.
At the clinic, many of the “patients” were seen not by the doctors, but by Williams, who held neither a medical license nor a DEA registration, according to the complaint. After a perfunctory conversation with the “patient,” Williams coordinated with Capistrano and Noel to prescribe drugs without a legitimate medical purpose.
Capistrano issued, during nine years, prescriptions for more than 524,000 doses of hydrocodone, 430,000 doses of carisoprodol, 77,000 doses of alprazolam, and 2.07 million doses of promethazine with codeine, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.
Noel issued, during seven years, prescriptions for more than 200,000 doses of hydrocodone, 55,000 doses of carisoprodol, 14,000 doses of alprazolam, and 450,000 doses of promethazine with codeine, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.
Benson Varghese, Capistrano’s attorney, wrote in a statement that he was reviewing material submitted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
“The government’s allegations cover a 10-year period. We will leave no stone unturned in the defense of Dr. Capistrano —who is presumed innocent — as we go through voluminous records recently released by the government. We look forward to Dr. Capistrano’s day in court.”
The pharmacists charged in the scheme are Wilkinson Thomas of Calvary Pharmacy; Christopher Ajayi of Remcare Pharmacy; Bartholomew Akubukwe of Beco Pharmacy; Nedal Naser of Brandy Pharmacy; and Ethel Oyekunle-Bubu of Ethel’s Pharmacy.
If they are convicted, the defendants each face up to 20 years in prison.
This story was originally published October 3, 2020 at 4:57 PM.
