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Date: 06-05-2021
Case Style:
Case Number: 4:20-cr-00290
Judge: Reed C. O'Connor
Court: United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas (Dallas County)
Plaintiff's Attorney: United States District Attorney’s Office
Defendant's Attorney:
Description: Dallas, Texas running a pill mill charged criminal defense lawyer represented Defendant, Dr. Caesar Mark Capistrano, 61, was charged with three counts of conspiracy to dispense a controlled substance and two counts of possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance.
“Doctors who run pill mills knowingly profit off of vulnerable people’s addictions,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Prerak Shah. “The Justice Department is determined to prosecute doctors who funnel powerful prescription drugs onto our streets. We will do everything within our power to curb the opioid epidemic.”
“Using one’s trusted status as a medical professional for unlawful acts cannot go unpunished,” stated Eduardo A. Chávez, Special Agent in Charge of the DEA’s Dallas Field Division. “The Dallas DEA will always seek justice against those who take advantage of individuals, especially ones who suffer from addiction.”
According to evidence presented at three different trials conducted in early 2021, Dr. Capistrano and his associate, 36-year-old Dr. Tameka Lachelle Noel, wrote prescriptions for hydrocodone, oxycodone, alprazolam, carisoprodol, zolpidem, phentermine, and promethazine with codeine, knowing the drugs would be diverted to the streets for illicit use.
Dr. Capistrano and Dr. Noel, assisted by 48-year-old clinic manager Shirley Ann Williams, used a network of recruiters to enlist individuals from the community and local homeless shelters to pose as “patients.” Recruiters paid each “patient” a small fee, usually $50 to $200 cash, to obtain controlled substance prescriptions from Dr. Capistrano and Dr. Noel.
The recruiters – who paid the clinic based in part on the amount of drugs prescribed – then filled the prescriptions at various complicit pill mill pharmacies and diverted the drugs for resale on the streets. The pharmacists charged the recruiters between $200 and $800 per prescription, filling hundreds and hundreds of prescriptions for a fee, according to evidence presented at trial.
At the clinic, many of the “patients” were seen not by the doctors, but by Ms. Williams, who possessed neither a medical license nor a DEA registration. After a perfunctory conversation with the “patient,” Ms. Williams allegedly coordinated with Dr. Capistrano and Dr. Noel to prescribe dangerous drugs without legitimate medical purpose. In order to make the prescriptions appear legitimate, the doctors occasionally included prescriptions for non-controlled substances, such as antibiotics and mineral ice.
Over a nine-year span, Dr. Capistrano issued prescriptions for more than 524,000 doses of hydrocodone, 430,000 doses of carisoprodol, 77,000 doses of alprazolam, and 2.07 million doses of promethazine with codeine. Over seven years, Dr. Noel issued prescriptions for more than 200,000 doses of hydrocodone, 55,000 doses of carisoprodol, 14,000 doses of alprazolam, and 450,000 doses of promethazine with codeine.
Often, the doctors prescribed multiple medications simultaneously and at the highest dosages available.
Medical professionals convicted in the scheme include:
Caesar Mark Capistrano, medical doctor
Convicted at trial on 1/28/2021 of three counts of conspiracy to dispense a controlled substance and two counts of possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance and was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison
Tameka Lachelle Noel, medical doctor
Pleaded guilty on 11/16/2020 to conspiracy to dispense a controlled substance and was sentenced to eight years federal prison
Ngozika Tracey Njoku, nurse practitioner
Pleaded guilty on 11/20/2020 to conspiracy to dispense a controlled substance and was sentenced to six months in federal prison
Clinic staff convicted in the scheme include:
Shirley Ann Williams, clinic office manager
Pleaded guilty on 11/18/2020 to conspiracy to disperse a controlled substance and was sentenced to six years in federal prison
Latonya Ann Tucker, office staff
Pleaded guilty on 11/20/2020 to conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance and was sentenced to five years federal prison
Pharmacists convicted in the scheme include:
Wilkinson Oloyede Thomas, Calvary Pharmacy
Convicted at trial on 1/28/2021 of three counts of conspiracy to dispense controlled substances and one count of possession with intent to distribute controlled substances
Christopher Kalejaiye Ajayi, Remcare Pharmacy
Convicted at trial on 3/2/2021 of three counts of conspiracy to dispense controlled substances, and two counts of possession with intent to distribute controlled substances
Bartholomew Anny Akubukwe, Beco Pharmacy
Pleaded guilty on 11/18/2020 to conspiracy to dispense a controlled substance and was sentenced to 11 years in federal prison
Nedal Helmi Naser, Brandy Pharmacy
Pleaded guilty on 3/16/2021 to conspiracy to dispense a controlled substance
Ethel Oyekunle-Bubu, Ethel’s Pharmacy
Convicted at trial on 1/28/2021 of three counts of conspiracy to dispense a controlled substance and two counts of possession with intent to distribute controlled substances
Recruiters convicted in the scheme include:
Ritchie Dale Milligan, Jr
Pleaded guilty on 11/18/2020 to conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance and was sentenced to eight years federal prison
Wayne Benard Kincade
Pleaded guilty on 11/16/2020 to conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance
Katie Lorane Parker
Pleaded guilty on 11/16/2020 to conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance and was sentenced to four years in federal prison
Cynthia Denise Cooks
Pleaded guilty on 11/25/2020 to conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance and was sentenced to five years federal prison
The DEA Dallas Field Division’s Fort Worth Office conducted the investigation, with the assistance of Homeland Security Investigations, IRS – Criminal Investigation, the U.S. Marshals Service, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the Parker County Sheriff’s Office, and the Fort Worth Police Department. The DEA’s Fort Worth Tactical Diversion Squad is comprised of DEA agents and task force officers from the Arlington Police Department, the Ellis County Sheriff’s Office, the North Richland Hills Police Department, the Benbrook Police Department, the Granbury Police Department, the Tarrant County Sheriff’s Office, and the Parker County Sheriff’s Office. This prosecution is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) Strike Force Initiative, which provides for the establishment of permanent multi-agency task force teams that work side-by-side in the same location. This co-located model enables agents from different agencies to collaborate on intelligence-driven, multi-jurisdictional operations to disrupt and dismantle the most significant drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Laura Montes and Shawn Smith are prosecuting the case.
21 U.S.C. § 846 (21 U.S.C. §§ 841 (a)(1) and (b)(1)(C)) Conspiracy to Dispense and Distribute, or Possess with Intent to Dispense and Distribute Hydrocodone
(1s)
21 U.S.C. § 846 (21 U.S.C. §§ 841(a)(1), (b)(1)(E)(2)) Conspiracy to Dispense and Distribute, or Possess with Intent to Dispense and Distribute Carisoprodol
(2s)
21 U.S.C. § 846 (21 U.S.C. §§ 841(a)(1) and (b)(1)(E)(3)) Conspiracy to Dispense and Distribute, or Possess with Intent to Dispense and Distribute Promethazine with Codeine
(3s)
21 U.S.C. §§ 841 (a)(1) and (b)(1)(C), (E)(2); and 18 U.S.C. § 2 Possession with Intent to Distribute and Dispense Hydrocodone or Carisoprodol; Aiding and Abetting
(18s)
21 U.S.C. §§ 841 (a)(1) and (b)(1)(C), (E)(2); and 18 U.S.C. § 2 Possession with Intent to Distribute and Dispense Hydrocodone or Carisoprodol; Aiding and Abetting
(19s)
Outcome: Pursuant to the Sentencing Reform Act of 1984, as amended, it is the judgment of the Court that the defendant, Caesar Mark Capistrano, in 4:20-CR-290-O(04), is hereby committed to the custody of the Federal Bureau of Prisons for a period of NINETY (90) MONTHS as to Count One; SIXTY (60) MONTHS as to Count Two; SIXTY (60) MONTHS as to Count Three; NINETY (90) MONTHS as to Count Eighteen; and SIXTY (60) MONTHS. Counts One, Two and Eighteen to run consecutively for a total of TWO HUNDRED FORTY (240) MONTHS; Counts Three and Nineteen to run concurrently to Counts One, Two and Eighteen for a total sentence of TWO HUNDRED FORTY (240) MONTHS. The Court did not order a fine because the defendant does not have the financial resources or future earning capacity to pay a fine.It is further ordered that the defendant pay a special assessment of $500. Supervised Release is Ordered for a term of THREE (3) years. Pursuant to 21 U.S.C. 853, it is hereby ordered that defendants interest in the following property is condemned and forfeited to the United States: $25,000 seized from his residence on August 12, 2020; $37,865 seized from his residence on August 12, 2020; and 5458 Monticello Avenue, Dallas, TX. The Court makes a non-binding recommendation to the BOP that Defendant, if appropriately classified, be allowed to serve his term of imprisonment as near as geographically possible to an FCI facility in the state of New York and that can accommodate his medical needs. The Defendant is remanded to the custody of the US Marshal.
Plaintiff's Experts:
Defendant's Experts:
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