18 are indicted in Internet pharmacy scheme

A federal grand jury Wednesday indicted 18 people in connection with Internet-based pharmacies that prosecutors contend were illegally importing and selling drugs.

U.S. Attorney for Utah Brett Tolman called the indictments the result of "a remarkable investigation" due to its scope and the fact investigators were able to charge people at every stage of the operation.

The indictments allege every one of the defendants was engaged in some part of an operation that distributed more than 11 million pills for millions of dollars from 2003 until the operations were shut down. In many cases, the pills were being distributed without any checks being made to see if the person ordering them had a legitimate prescription or had even been seen by a doctor, according to prosecutors.

Furthermore, Frank Smith, assistant agent-in-charge with the Drug Enforcement Administration, said the pills being mailed were actually sub-potent.

"What (customers) think they're getting, they're actually not getting," he said.

Tolman stressed that the act of buying prescription drugs over the Internet itself is not illegal. However, what these Web sites didn't have were checks and balances to make sure the person buying the drugs actually had a prescription, he said.

Furthermore, those who had legitimate prescriptions were put at risk by not receiving the pills they thought they were ordering.

Among those indicted is an Orem physician, accused in a conspiracy to import Phentermine, a stimulant, and lying to investigators about his involvement with the Web site lighthousemeds.com.

According to an IRS agent's affidavit filed with one of the charges, authorities became aware of the Web sites through a confidential informant, who identified Greg Crosby, 52, of Provo, who was distributing Phentermine through his Web-based pharmacy, lighthousemeds.com. The IRS said he made almost $1 million a month in sales and believes the site grossed approximately $8.9 million overall.

As of Wednesday, the Web sites were shut down, but the doctors were allowed to keep their practices open. Tolman declined comment Wednesday whether their practices in Utah were also being investigated. Crosby's Web sites are not licensed pharmacies, federal authorities said.

The Internet pharmacies were being supplied by companies in Mexico, Tolman said. Four people in Mexico were indicted in Salt Lake City Wednesday. One was in custody due to a prior unrelated arrest.

In June, Crosby's home was raided by federal agents. He identified Dr. James Brinton and Noah Sifuentes as business partners.

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