Florida Pair Held For Internet Prescription Drug Scam
From News Sources
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Fort Lauderdale, December 4, 2003 -- Federal agents have arrested an Indian American brother-sister business team in Florida, saying the pair headed a ring of online pharmacies that illegally sold $125 million worth of addictive diet and sleeping pills via the Internet since 1998.
The arrest of Vineet "Vincent" Chhabra and his sister, Sabina Chhabra Faruqui, -- including five doctors and a pharmacist from other states -- is said to be the government´s largest crackdown so far on a proliferation of online pharmacies that sell drugs to almost anyone who wants them.
Chhabra the owner of USAprescription.com, is a 32-year-old Golden Beach, Fla., resident and is described by prosecutors as the main organizer of the scheme that reportedly sold an average of 2 million pills yearly to customers as far away as the United Kingdom, federal prosecutors said in a 108-count indictment.
However, through counsel, Chhabra has maintained that he has always relied upon credentialed, state-licensed professionals to review medical information and to authorize non-narcotic prescriptions via the Internet when medically appropriate. “The Internet and e-commerce have applications in healthcare that are beneficial for consumers today and in the future,” said Chhabra. “We have always been committed to providing these services within the parameters of the law.”
Chhabra and his colleagues reportedly made millions in profits and spent their money on luxury cars, large houses, a jet, precious gems and a grand piano, all of which the government is moving to seize.
Federal and state laws say doctors and pharmacists cannot legally dispense drugs -- especially potentially risky stimulants used for dieting -- unless the doctor has first taken a thorough medical history and examined the patient face-to-face.
Chhabra´s network of at least 16 Web sites dispensed pills to consumers who filled out a brief online form, the indictment said. The operators contended that independent doctors reviewed each form before pills were dispensed, but prosecutors said it was a false claim. The doctors worked for the Web operators and actually signed few if any of the prescriptions.
"No one associated with the defendants checked the accuracy of the information customers provided," the indictment said. Nor did the doctors perform any follow-up exams, as many laws require.
"Internet sites that distribute controlled substances and other drugs without valid prescriptions will not be tolerated," said Peter Keisler, an assistant attorney general with the U.S. Department of Justice, in a statement issued by federal officials in Alexandria, Va., where the indictment was filed.
Drug industry analysts said they hoped the arrests would drive other unscrupulous drug sellers from the Internet without hurting legitimate online pharmacies.
The criminal charges against Chhabra were an outgrowth of a three-year investigation. In October, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration had suspended the controlled substances license of a Chhabra company, RX Network because of illegal sales.
Officials and documents said Chhabra´s companies pushed stimulant diet pills such as Meridia, Bontril, Ionamin, Adipex-P, Teramine and Fastin, as well as sleeping pills and hot Internet sellers such as Viagra and Celebrex. Investigators said they filled out online forms posing as thin, teen-aged girls and still could buy diet drugs from RX Network.
The Chhabras and three partners operated at least 16 Web sites with names such as get-it-on.com, cybrx.com, eprescribe.com and usaprescription.com.
"To maximize profit, defendants used mass e-mailings, advertising, pricing schemes and other marketing schemes to sell large quantities of controlled substances to customers through the Web sites," the indictment said.
The Chhabras are being held pending a hearing.
Others arrested included: their uncle, Sunil K. Sethi, who ran a pharmacy in Midlothian, Va.; Web site operators Dr. Daniel Thompson of Columbus, Ohio, and James Trovato Jr. of Independence, Ohio; physicians William Thompson of St. Charles, Mo., Laurence Cockerille Jr. of Litchfield, Ohio, Arturo Portales of Lexington, Ky., and Russell Johnson of Chester, Va.; and pharmacist Daniel Varalli of Salem, Va.
One of Chhabra´s attorneys, Sean Ellsworth of Miami, said his client´s online Web sites were run legally, filling valid prescriptions from licensed physicians. Chhabra relied on the assurances of doctors who signed the prescriptions that the drugs were suitable for the patients, Ellsworth said.
"Mr. Chhabra has done absolutely nothing illegal," Ellsworth said. "Mr. Chhabra has always relied on the professional judgment of doctors and pharmacists. Doctors have told him they use telemedicine [to evaluate patients for medications] and he accepts that they feel that is appropriate."
Chhabra claims “The federal government is attempting to use litigation to regulate the Internet-based healthcare industry, threatening to bring charges against me personally and our company.”
Chhabra insists that internet-based companies, such as his USAPrescription.com, actually facilitate interactions between patients, doctors and pharmacies, and that they provide patients with access to information and doctors for treatment with what are commonly called “embarrassment drugs.”
By law, patients are required to provide an accurate medical history and must answer a comprehensive medical questionnaire. The sites then securely transmit the medical information to licensed, independent physicians who use their own professional experience and judgment, along with the thorough, patient medical history questionnaire, to prescribe medication when appropriate.
The prescriptions are then sent electronically to a licensed U.S. pharmacy, such as RX Network. The pharmacies fill the prescriptions, and then ship them via FedEx overnight to the patients, with an adult signature required at delivery.
‘Since I founded this business more than five years ago - and subsequently helped create an industry that now legally serves millions of American consumers each year, we have operated responsibly and openly under laws set forth by local, state and federal governments,’ says Chhabra on his Internet site eprescribe.com.
He goes on to claim: ‘Internet-based healthcare is not a complex industry. Quite simply, USA Prescription, Inc. and other legitimate companies like ours rely on credentialed, state-licensed physicians to authorize non-narcotic prescriptions to patients via the Internet. Since its inception, the health care field has been serving its patients in much the same manner - a physician prescribes a medication and a pharmacy fills the prescription.’
Chhabra concludes: ‘unlike the multitude of doctors, pharmacists and consumers who already use our services, the government was not prepared for this technological advancement. Instead of embracing innovation and supporting consumers´ rights to privacy and choice, the government has turned to litigation to try and make up for its negligence in properly defining the boundaries of Internet-based healthcare.’
Of the impending confrontation in the court, Chhabra explains: “We recognize the limits of our resources and the great personal risks we face, fighting an uphill battle against an adversary with unlimited resources at their disposal.”
Vineet “Vincent” Chhabra is the founder of the Chhabra Group headquartered in Weston, Florida, and is also founder and CEO of the Chhabra Family Foundation. Known for it philanthropic activities in South Florida, the group donated $250,000 to the American Red Cross Disaster Relief fund following the national tragedy on September 11, 2001. In March Chhabra celebrated his 32nd birthday by handing out 500 meals to the homeless in the Fort Lauderdale area.