TAMPA, Fla. – On March 16, 2022, Dr. Zachary Bird (51, Tampa) was sentenced to 24 months in federal prison, followed by 1 year of supervised release, for structuring cash transactions to evade bank reporting requirements. As part of his sentence, the Court also entered a money judgment in the...

TAMPA, Fla. – United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg announced the return of an indictment charging Dr. Qing McGaha (55, Tampa) with conspiracy to commit unlawful distribution of controlled substances and unlawful distribution of controlled substances for no legitimate medical purpose and outside the usual course of professional practice, as...

FORT MYERS, Fla. – U.S. District Judge Sheri Polster Chappell today sentenced Gerald Michael Abraham, 76, of Naples, Florida. to three years in federal prison for dispensing controlled substances (oxycodone and amphetamine) for no legitimate medical purpose. The court also ordered Abraham to forfeit the following items to the United...

MIAMI – A Florida man pleaded guilty yesterday to unlawfully distributing opioids at his pain management clinic in Miami, Florida. According to court documents, Habib Geagea Palacios, 40, of Miami, owned a cash-only pain management clinic in Miami, Florida named General Care Center, Inc. At General Care Center, Palacios paid...

MIAMI - A federal court in Florida ordered a Tampa-area pharmacy shut down and prohibited two of its employees from ever owning, managing or operating any business where controlled substances are dispensed. Pursuant to an agreed consent judgment and permanent injunction filed in U.S. District Court for the Middle District...

TAMPA, Fla. - Vistapharm, Inc. has agreed to pay the United States $325,000 to resolve allegations that Vistapharm violated the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) by failing to maintain records required by the CSA. In addition to paying a civil penalty, Vistapharm has agreed to sign separately a Memorandum of Agreement...