Two Brooklyn Pharmacists Convicted for Illegal Distribution of Oxycodone.
“As proven at trial, Mohamed Hassan and Yousef Ennab were licensed pharmacists who participated in a large-scale scheme using illegal medical prescriptions to obtain oxycodone for distribution on the streets of New York City.”
Mohamed Hassan, a Brooklyn pharmacist held ownership stakes in more than a dozen pharmacies including: Nile RX, Nile Ridge Pharmacy at 6922 – 4th Avenue in Bay Ridge, Nile City, Sunset Corner Pharmacy at 6002 – 4th Avenue in Sunset Park, Prospect Care, Downtown RX and Forest Care, among others.
Yousef Ennab (above left) was the supervising pharmacist at Forest Care, one of Hassan’s pharmacies in Staten Island.
“The defendants abused their access to oxycodone and violated the trust placed in them as pharmacists by illegally agreeing to supply drug dealers with tens of thousands of pills to sell on the streets of our district with zero regard for the immense harm this dangerously addictive narcotic has caused,” stated United States Attorney Durham. (US Attorney’s Office)
“The verdict against Yousef Ennab and Mohamed Hassan sends a strong message to anyone in the medical profession willing to betray their patients’ trust,” stated DEA New York Special Agent in Charge Tarentino.“
“The pharmacists convicted in this case chose to dispense illegally prescribed controlled substances to patients and accept cash kickbacks to do so, which is especially egregious given the ongoing opioid epidemic,” stated HHS-OIG Special Agent in Charge Gruchacz.
“These two men used their positions as pharmacists to scheme and cheat the system, filling their pockets with the money of the vulnerable and addicted. Yousef Ennab and Mohamed Hassan had little regard for the safety and well-being of their clients, and today a jury of their peers found them guilty of their criminal behavior, stated IRS-CI Special Agent in Charge Chavis.
“The numbers here are staggering—over 1.2 million pills exchanged with a street value of approximately $24 million.”
THIS IS AWFUL! Why haven’t major networks and newspapers covered this?
The US Attorney’s Office Described what happened:
“The scheme relied on filling illegally issued prescriptions for 30-day supplies of oxycodone 30 mg that were written out of a Brooklyn medical practice operating as a pill mill, often for patients that the resident doctor at the practice had never examined. Oxycodone 30 pills are high in strength and are prescribed to cancer patients, for instance. In some cases, the prescriptions were for individuals whose identities had been stolen and were not patients of the practice. The prescriptions were then filled at pharmacies controlled by Hassan, including the pharmacy where Ennab worked. Hassan and Ennab conspired with other drug dealers to effect the distribution of the illegally obtained oxycodone. One of the drug dealers picked up the oxycodone from the pharmacies in exchange for cash payments to Hassan and Ennab. Hassan and other pharmacist co-conspirators also billed insurance companies for the pills even though they had no legitimate medical purpose. The trial evidence included video footage of Ennab taking a cash payment from one of the drug dealers, Michael Kent, while handing over multiple prescriptions for oxycodone for sham patients. In total, the scheme resulted in the illegal distribution of more than 1.2 million pills of oxycodone worth more than $36 million in retail street value.“
“Six co-defendants, including Dr. Somsri Ratanaprasatporn, her receptionist Leticia Smith and pharmacists Bassam Amin and Omar Elsayed, previously pleaded guilty based on their involvement in the scheme and are awaiting sentencing. A seventh co-defendant, Michael Kent, previously pleaded guilty and was sentenced to nine years’ incarceration.“
The Defendants:
YOUSEF ENNAB Age: 27 Brooklyn, New York
MOHAMED HASSA Age: 34 Brooklyn, New York
Co-Defendants Who Pleaded Guilty:
LETICIA SMITH Age: 54 Brooklyn, New York
BASSAM AMIN Age: 69 Brooklyn, New York
OMAR ELSAYED Age: 28 Hackensack, New Jersey
MICHAEL KENT Age: 49 Brooklyn, New York
ANTHONY MATHIS Age: 55 New Windsor, New York
Dr. SOMSRI RATANAPRASATPORN Age: 75 Staten Island
RAYMOND WALKER Age: 70 Brooklyn, New York
Hugs,
marlene
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