Fake Online Pharmacy Owner Charged in Federal Court – Accused of Distributing Counterfeit Medications
A federal grand jury in Louisville, KY, indicted an online pharmacy owner on charges of illegally distributing and dispensing controlled substances, including counterfeit medication, as well as wire fraud, and money laundering. The defendant, after fleeing to Hong Kong, was extradited for arraignment on August 23.
Stacy Allen Taylor, age 44, of Louisville, KY, is accused of illegally dispensing controlled substances to customers via online pharmacies. Taylor, operating in Kentucky, allegedly used website addresses including ww.RXvaluePharm.com to distribute and dispense orders for prescription drugs for a total income of $790,000, announced the Department of Justice.
Taylor is accused of providing customers with prescription medications without requiring prescriptions, and also providing counterfeit medications that were tested and found to contain no active ingredient. Instead of requiring a prescription, Taylor allegedly permitted customers to provide information to telemarketing sales agents which allowed customers to pick the type and quantity of controlled substances and prescription drugs for purchase.
Taylor is not licensed to practice medicine in Kentucky, or licensed to distribute prescription drugs.
Taylor is also accused of shipping these medications from India and Hong Kong to customers in the U.S., as well as making transaction payments through a bank in Cyprus in order to avoid detection in the source of the medications.
Taylor is accused of dispensing 90 counterfeit Phentermine pills to a resident of Frazeysburg, OH, after the resident completed an online order from with his company. Accuses the indictment, “The order was authorized by Taylor and was filled by Health PMO and associates via the internet. The order was accepted and processed without a valid prescription, interview, or physical examination by a licensed medical professional...Lab results show there was no Phentermine in the product received.”
Taylor is accused of delivering medicine interstate in packages that did not have manufacturer information, expiration and lot numbers, adequate directions, or even the name of the medication, as well as being dispensed without a valid prescription.
In addition the counterfeit medicine and illegal pharmacy charges, Taylor is also charged with knowingly defrauding investors by offering fake stock in the illegal pharmacy business in exchange for $10,000 cash payments.
Consumers can use online pharmacies safely by selecting VIPPS approved pharmacies.
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