Seven Charged in Scheme to Fraudulently Obtain Prescription Painkiller Pills

A 39-count indictment was filed charging seven people from Cleveland and East Cleveland with various offenses related to a scheme to fraudulently obtain thousands of prescription painkiller pills, law enforcement officials announced today.

Health care fraud and aggravated identity theft charges were also filed against some defendants, who are accused of forging prescriptions for Oxycontin and Percocet pills, hiring people to have them filled at pharmacies throughout the region, and then selling the pills on the street, according to the indictment.

“We have seen a huge increase in prescription drug abuse in Ohio, and this case demonstrates the lengths people will go to defraud and profit from pills,” said Steven M. Dettelbach, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio. “Instead of dealers shipping in drugs from South America, we now have people forging prescriptions.”

“The abuse of illicitly obtained prescription drugs is reaching epidemic proportions, surpassing that of marijuana, cocaine, and heroin combined,” said Stephen Anthony, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Cleveland office. “Dismantling illicit drug diversion networks such as the organization charged in this investigation will remain a top FBI priority.”

Those charged with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute Oxycodone:

■Louis Eppinger, age 53, of Cleveland

■Patricia Arnold, age 61, of Cleveland

■Anthony H. Perry, age 42, of East Cleveland

■Elizabeth A. Davis, age 40, of East Cleveland

■James Byrge, age 62, of Cleveland

■Judy Burrows, age 25, of Cleveland

■Brittany N. Glass, age 22, of Cleveland

Between 2011 and 2012, Eppinger, Arnold, Glass, Perry, Davis, Burrows, and Byrge engaged in a conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute oxycodone, according to the indictment.

Eppinger obtained blank prescription paper from an unknown source and DEA numbers of various physicians located in Northern Ohio for the purposes of passing fraudulent prescriptions for Oxycontin and/or Percocet, both of which contain oxycodone, according to the indictment.

Eppinger provided the blank prescription paper to Arnold, who forged the prescriptions, according to the indictment.

Eppinger then provided the fraudulent prescriptions to Glass, Perry, and Davis, who served as “walkers” and attempted to pass the prescriptions at pharmacies in Northeast Ohio, including several in Cleveland as well as locations in Shaker Heights, Willoughby, and Garfield Heights, according to the indictment.

Glass, Perry, and Davis then gave the pills to Eppinger, who paid them for passing the fraudulent prescriptions. Eppinger then sold the pills or provided them on consignment to Burrows, Burge, and others, according to the indictment.

Eppinger also faces 18 counts of health care fraud for defrauding the Ohio Medicaid program by billing more than $20,000 for prescription painkillers to which he was not entitled, according to the indictment. He is also charged with two counts of aggravated identity theft for using the identities of two people in relation to a felony, according to the indictment.

If convicted, the defendants’ sentences will be determined by the court after reviewing factors unique to this case, including the defendant’s prior criminal record, if any; the defendant’s role in the offense; and the characteristics of the violation. In all cases, the sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum and in most cases it will be less than the maximum.

The case is being handled by Assistant United States Attorneys Michael L. Collyer and Michelle M. Baeppler, following investigation by the FBI’s Cleveland Field Office, with assistance from the Cleveland Police Department, West Shore Enforcement Bureau, Ohio High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area, and Ohio Attorney General’s Office.

An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. The defendants are entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.