Rochester Attorney Indicted on Drug, Health Care Fraud, and Tax Charges

ROCHESTER, NY—U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that a federal grand jury in Rochester has returned a six-count superseding indictment charging Salvatore J. Marcera, Jr., 50, of Rochester, New York, with participation in a drug distribution conspiracy and a health care fraud scheme relating to prescription pain medication, as well as the filing of false personal income tax returns. The charges carry a maximum penalty of 52 years in prison, a fine of $1,650,000, or both.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Frank H. Sherman, who is handling the case, stated that according to the superseding indictment, Marcera participated in a drug distribution conspiracy involving oxycodone, a controlled substance, from January 2003 through February 2007. During the same time period, the defendant is also charged with participating in a health care fraud scheme. Marcera and other participants are accused of obtaining large quantities of prescription pain medications, including oxycodone in forms such as Oxycontin and Roxicodone, that were prescribed for personal use but were not medically necessary. As a result, pharmacies submitted claims for payment to health care benefit programs. The drugs were subsequently sold for profit.

In addition, the indictment further alleges that the defendant filed false tax returns for tax years 2004 through 2007, understating the gross receipts of his business. The total for the four tax years is alleged to be approximately $356,353.

The superseding indictment is the culmination of an investigation on the part of special agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Richard W. Kollmar; the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division, under the direction of Charles R. Pine, Special Agent in Charge of the New York Field Office; and the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Thomas F. O’Donnell, as well as Investigators from the New York State Insurance Department’s Frauds Bureau, under the direction of Frank Orlando.

The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.