Former Kentucky Doctor Pleads Guilty To Illegal Distribution Of 25,000 Controlled Substance Prescription Pills
Rano Bofill faces maximum possible sentence of 20 years in federal prison
Contact: Public Information Officer
Number: (313) 234-4310
LEXINGTON, Ky. - A former doctor in Paintsville, Kentucky, has admitted to his role in a conspiracy that was responsible for illegally distributing more than 25,000 Controlled Substance prescription pills in the eastern half of Kentucky.
On Monday, March 17th, 2014, in the federal court in Lexington, Kentucky, Rano Bofill, 72, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to unlawfully dispense oxycodone, a Schedule II Controlled Substance, before U.S. District Judge Amul Thapar.
According to court documents, from January 2009, until December 2012, Bofill conspired with Tammy Cantrell and Shelby Lackey, owners of Care More Pain Management, LLC, to distribute thousands of oxycodone pills to patients without a legitimate medical purpose.
Bofill acknowledged that he wrote controlled substance prescriptions for numerous patients after performing little to no examination and, in some instances, he even signed off on prescriptions without actually ever seeing the patients. Patients who visited the clinic paid $200 for the initial visit and $185 for subsequent visits; all fees were paid in cash. Bofill admitted he saw approximately 25 patients per day and was paid between $5,000 and $6,000 per week.
Lackey and Cantrell pleaded guilty last year to their roles in the conspiracy. At the time of their guilty pleas, Cantrell and Lackey were the first pain clinic owners in the Eastern District of Kentucky to have federal convictions for illegally distributing prescription drugs. Another doctor at the clinic, Richard Albert, pleaded guilty in July 2012 to a conspiracy charge and was sentenced to 75 months in prison. Albert, Cantrell and Lackey have collectively agreed to forfeit approximately $1.3 million, which represents proceeds from the conspiracy.
The investigation into this case started when detectives with the Kentucky Attorney General’s Office received complaints from local law enforcement that Care More was seeing a remarkably high volume of patients. Court records state that patient lines at Care More stretched into the parking lot.
Kerry B. Harvey, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky, U.S. Drug Enforcement (DEA) Acting Special Agent in Charge James Van Allen, and Jack Conway, Kentucky Attorney General, jointly announced the plea.
The investigation was conducted by the Kentucky Attorney General’s Office, the DEA and the Paintsville Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Roger West prosecuted this case on behalf of the federal government.
Bofill will appear for sentencing on July 14, 2014. He faces a maximum of 20 years in prison.
