A former Blacksburg doctor has been sentenced to 20 months in federal prison for his role in a massive oxycodone trafficking operation.
Frank Purpera Jr., 44, of Blacksburg, was convicted of 67 counts of obtaining controlled substances by fraud, one count of omitting material information required to be kept, and one count of making a false statement.
The charges stem from Purpera’s actions as the owner of the Virginia Vein Institute in Blacksburg, where he obtained 3,200 oxycodone pills in 2016.
Evidence presented at trial showed that Purpera had no record of what happened to the pills, despite claiming to law enforcement that they were used for procedures on his patients.
However, further investigation revealed that this claim was untrue, and that Purpera had, in fact, distributed the pills to his wife, which would have been outside the scope of his medical practice.
Purpera was also found to have tampered with witnesses, advising two of his employees to say ‘I don’t recall’ if questioned by the government, and showing a video clip from the film ‘The Wolf of Wall Street’ to one of the employees, in which characters deal with a witness and state ‘I don’t recall.’
The investigation into Purpera’s actions was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Department of Health and Human Services-Office of the Inspector General, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Virginia Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, and an Investigator with the United States Attorney’s Office.
Purpera was sentenced in U.S. District Court in Roanoke on February 26, 2018, and was ordered to pay a fine of $34,000 and a $6,800 special assessment.
Purpera’s case serves as a stark reminder of the dangers of oxycodone trafficking and the importance of holding medical professionals accountable for their actions.
Key Facts
- State: Virginia
- Category: Drug Trafficking|Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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