An Avon Lake veterinarian was booked into jail Tuesday night, accused of using the name of a deceased dog to obtain nearly 2,000 oxycodone pills and dozens of alprazolam tablets over a 10-month stretch. Dr. Kris L. Taylor, 62, of Strongsville, and co-defendant Camile Nieto, 29, of Avon, were indicted on seven felony and misdemeanor counts tied to what investigators describe as a prescription drug scheme built around a dog named Punkin, who was already deceased when the alleged scheme began.
Taylor was booked into the Lorain County Jail at 8:41 p.m. on October 6 under a secret indictment in case 26CR001610, and released just 28 minutes later after posting a $500,000 cash or surety bond, according to Lorain Daily. Secret indictments allow prosecutors to secure charges before notifying defendants, and the outlet reports that while the indictment lists the co-defendant as Camile Nieto, Lorain County Jail records identify her as Camille Angulat-Nieto. Her booking record listed a $500,000 bond.
According to Cleveland 19 News, investigators allege Taylor and Nieto wrote and filled more than 20 prescriptions for oxycodone and alprazolam in Punkin's name, with the conduct stretching from August 10, 2024, through June 7, 2025. The prescriptions were allegedly filled at pharmacies across northeast Ohio, including locations in Avon and Avon Lake. Per the same account, the pair appeared for their initial hearing in Lorain County Common Pleas Court, where each was given a $500,000 bond.
Pill Count and the Charges at Stake
The scale of the alleged scheme is detailed in the indictment itself: Taylor obtained roughly 1,980 oxycodone tablets and 90 alprazolam tablets using the dead dog's name between August 2024 and June 2025, and another prescription for 90 oxycodone tablets was dropped off at a pharmacy on June 7, 2025, the same Lorain Daily report states.
The most serious charge against both defendants is engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity, a first-degree felony. Under Ohio Revised Code 2923.32, that statute functions as the state's version of racketeering law, according to Patituce & Associates, and it allows prosecutors to bundle individual drug offenses into a single high-tier felony when they're committed as part of an ongoing enterprise. Taylor and Nieto also face second-degree felony counts of deception to obtain a dangerous drug and possession of drugs involving oxycodone, a fourth-degree felony count of illegal processing of drug documents tied to oxycodone, fifth-degree felony counts covering alprazolam-related deception and document processing, and a first-degree misdemeanor count of alprazolam possession, per Cleveland 19 News.
A Second District Court of Appeals opinion describes an agreed sentence of 11 to 16.5 years in a particular case.
Release Conditions and Upcoming Court Dates
As part of his release conditions, Taylor must undergo a substance-abuse assessment, comply with any recommended treatment, and maintain complete abstinence from alcohol and illegal drugs while the case is pending, the same Lorain Daily report notes. Nieto is scheduled to return to court on October 15 at 8:45 a.m., while Taylor's next court date is set for October 23 at 8:30 a.m., according to Cleveland 19 News.
Taylor is the owner and director of Landings Animal Hospital, located on Avon Belden Road in Avon Lake. The animal hospital remains open for business, per Cleveland 19 News.
