In a serious crackdown on illegal opioid distribution in Houston, Andres Martinez Jr., the 30-year-old office manager of a medical clinic, has been sentenced to seven years behind bars for his part in a $1.2 million pill mill scheme. The U.S. Attorney's Office announced the conviction, which came after evidence presented at trial showed the clinic handed out over 600,000 opioid pills without legitimate medical reasons.
The federal jury found Martinez and Dr. Oscar Lightner, 74, guilty on April 11 for their roles in the operation of Jomori Health and Wellness, which was a front for the pill mill activities. Chief U.S. District Judge Lee H. Rosenthal has now ordered that the judiciary hammer fall, sentencing Martinez to 84 months in federal prison, immediately followed by three years of supervised release. Lightner, Martinez's stepfather and owner of the clinic, had also been previously sentenced to a seven-year term in federal prison for his involvement.
Jomori masqueraded as a pain management clinic but was the stage for illegal prescriptions, including drugs like hydrocodone, carisoprodol, and alprazolam, prescribed by Lightner in exchange for cash payments of $250 to $500. Martinez orchestrated a system that brought in individuals, some from homeless shelters, to pose as patients and receive these illicit prescriptions.
Over a span of 14 months, the scheme netted Jomori more than $1.2 million in cash, feeding an opioid crisis that continues to plague communities across the nation. The DEA's intensive investigation brought an end to the operation, with Acting Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri and DEA Special Agent in Charge Daniel C. Comeaux leading the announcement of the sentence.
Prosecutors Monica Cooper and Andrew Tamayo of the Justice Department's Criminal Division's Fraud Section were the horsepower behind the trial, working under the umbrella of the Health Care Fraud Strike Force Program. In their ongoing battle against health care fraud, the program has charged over 5,400 defendants, who've collectively billed more than $27 billion to federal health programs and insurers. Steps are also being taken by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and the Office of the Inspector General for Health and Human Services to hold providers accountable for their involvement in such fraudulent schemes.
