Mooresville Pharmacist Sentenced to 40 Months in Prison for Role in Drug Distribution Conspiracy
Former Employee of www.YourOnlineDoctor.com Also Sentenced to 23 Months in Prison

CHARLOTTE, NC—Alvin Woody, a Mooresville, North Carolina pharmacist, and Stephen Giacobbe, a former employee at www.youronlinedoctor.com, were sentenced today to 40 months and 23 months in prison, respectively, for their roles in a massive conspiracy to distribute millions of hydrocodone pills to thousands of customers throughout the country. Both defendants previously pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute hydrocodone and other Schedule III and IV controlled substances outside of the usual course of professional practice. Woody additionally pled guilty to one count of money laundering.

According to the indictment and the record at the sentencing hearing, Woody and Giacobbe conspired with each other and several others to distribute powerful and addictive controlled substances to customers throughout the United States based on purported prescriptions faxed to Woody Pharmacy by a Vermont-based website, www.youronlinedoctor.com (“YOD”). These purported prescriptions were, in fact, nothing more than drug orders bearing a doctor’s photocopied signature and based on a telephone interview with a YOD customer. The phone consultation was generally conducted by YOD employees, such as Stephen Giacobbe, with no training or authority to issue prescriptions. Employees at YOD then faxed the purported prescriptions to Woody Pharmacy in Mooresville, a pharmacy which YOD knew would not question the legitimacy of the purported prescriptions. Based on the nearly 65,000 drug orders and associated refills submitted by YOD to Woody Pharmacy since January 2004, Woody Pharmacy in Mooresville distributed nearly 7 million dosage units of hydrocodone to thousands of customers nationwide. The money laundering charge stems from one of Woody’s payments in excess of $10,000 to a wholesale drug distributor. Woody purchased the controlled substances, namely hydrocodone, to fill the YOD drug orders.

At both sentencing hearings, Chief United States District Judge Robert Conrad noted the seriousness and danger of this massive operation and the need to deter others from engaging in similar conduct. Woody’s sentence also included the forfeiture of various parcels of real property, a pontoon boat and numerous financial accounts totaling approximately $468,000.

Today’s announcement is made by Edward R. Ryan, Acting United States Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina; Owen D. Harris, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in North Carolina; Jeannine A. Hammett, Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigations in North and South Carolina; and Rodney G. Benson, Special Agent in Charge of Drug Enforcement Administration, Atlanta Division.

“Drug dealers are drug dealers, whether they are licensed pharmacists or other professionals illegally distributing so-called ‘prescription drugs’ like hydrocodone, or street dealers peddling crack. The Department of Justice is committed to prosecuting all such violations of the federal drug laws. We hope that the former YOD customers recovering from addiction and the families of those customers adversely affected by the actions of these defendants take some solace in today’s results,” said Acting United States Attorney Ryan. Ryan praised the joint investigative efforts of the FBI, the IRS Criminal Investigations Division and the Drug Enforcement Administration.

Three co-defendants, Kathleen Giacobbe, Porfirio Orta-Rosario and Christopher Otiko will stand trial in this district starting August 10, 2009. Co-conspirator Celeste Otiko was previously sentenced to 20 months in prison for her role in the offense. The prosecution is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Melissa Rikard and Dana Washington.