Related Federal Cases
- Stock Promoter Sahachaisere Gets 27 Months in Pump-and-Dump Scheme · Arizona
- Letitia James, Antitrust Lawsuit, New York, 2023 · Arizona
- Live Nation, Antitrust Lawsuit, New York NY, 2024 · Arizona
- Chapin & Crew Hit Solano Co. Energy Firm for $2.2M · Arizona
- Murder for Drugs: 5 Charged in Border Agent’s Slaying · Arizona
Arizona Man Sentenced to 76 Months for Prescription Med Scheme
Miami, Florida – Joshua Ryan Joles, a 38-year-old Arizona resident, has been sentenced to 76 months in federal prison for his role in a sophisticated prescription medication diversion scheme that involved millions of dollars in diverted pharmaceutical drugs.
Joles managed one of the wholesale companies involved in the scheme, which lasted from 2014 to 2019. Instead of paying full price to drug manufacturers, Joles bought his wholesale supply at a discount from co-conspirators who obtained the drugs from black market sellers. The medications were then re-packaged and sold to unwitting retail pharmacies and consumers at big mark-ups.
During the conspiracy, $78 million in illegal proceeds was laundered through a shell company bank account operated by Joles’ co-conspirators. Joles pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to traffic in medical products with false documentation and one count of conspiring to launder money.
Joles is one of nine defendants originally charged in case no. 19-cr-20674, seven of whom have pled guilty and been sentenced. Five more defendants are facing charges in a second superseding indictment, and one fugitive remains at large.
The case was investigated by the FBI Miami and FDA-OCI Miami Field Office, with assistance from the U.S. Attorney’s Offices for the Northern District of California, the District of Arizona, and the Western District of Washington, and the FBI’s Los Angeles, Phoenix, and Seattle Field Offices.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Frank Tamen and Walter Norkin are prosecuting the case, while Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicole Grosnoff is handling asset forfeiture. The prosecution was part of Operation Southern Hospitality, a result of the ongoing efforts by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) to combat transnational organized crime.
Key Facts
- State: Florida
- Category: Drug Trafficking|Fraud & Financial Crimes|Violent Crime|White Collar Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
ðŸâ€Â’ Get the grimiest stories delivered weekly. Subscribe free →
MORE FEDERAL CRIME NEWS
US NewsUS NewsUS NewsUS News