Nashville, Tennessee – A brazen conspiracy to obtain and distribute the powerful opioid oxycodone has landed five Nashville-area men in hot water. According to a federal indictment, the men used stolen DEA registration numbers and patients’ personal identifying information to obtain fraudulent prescriptions for the highly addictive painkiller.
The indictment, returned by a federal grand jury on June 13, 2018, charges the following individuals with various offenses, including wire fraud and aggravated identity theft:
Simbarashe Kanjanda, aka Simba, 37, of Hermitage, Tennessee;
William Afari, 24, of Antioch, Tennessee;
Robert Pride, Jr., 31, of Nashville, Tennessee;
AbdulNasar Nour, 24, of Antioch, Tennessee; and
Kudakawashe Mandishona, aka Kuda, 23, of Antioch, Tennessee.
According to the indictment, the five individuals were part of a conspiracy to steal DEA registration numbers from area physicians and patients’ personal identifying information from medical and dental clinics in the middle Tennessee area. The DEA registration numbers were then used to create fraudulent prescriptions for oxycodone in the names of patients whose identities had been stolen. The fraudulent prescriptions were then presented to area pharmacies by co-conspirators, who obtained the oxycodone and then conspired to possess and distribute the oxycodone in middle Tennessee.
The indictment also alleges that the defendants sent text messages to other co-conspirators to facilitate and request fraudulent prescriptions.
If convicted of the drug conspiracy, the defendants face a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. The defendants also face an additional mandatory consecutive sentence of at least 2 years in prison for the aggravated identity theft offenses.
The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration; the Tennessee Office of Inspector General; and the Smyrna Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ahmed A. Safeeullah.
An indictment is merely an accusation and is not evidence of guilt. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
This enforcement action is part of a nationwide health care fraud initiative announced by Attorney General Jeff Sessions.
Key Facts
- State: Tennessee
- Category: Drug Trafficking|Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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