New Windsor man charged in oxycodone scheme that made millions for crew

A New Windsor man was one of eight people accused Wednesday of conspiring to illegally distribute more than 1.2 million oxycodone pills through an operation based in a doctor's office in Brooklyn.

The eight were charged under an indictment that was unsealed in federal court in Brooklyn Wednesday morning. Prosecutors said the group made millions of dollars from the scheme.

Anthony Mathis, 55, of New Windsor, was one of three defendants identified by Breon Peace, the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, for allegedly overseeing crews of sham patients who received the medically unnecessary prescriptions, along with Michael Kent, 49, and Raymond Walker, 70, both of Brooklyn.

Mathis was a crew chief who paid a doctor's office manager, Leticia Smith, to issue oxycodone prescriptions to crew members, prosecutors said.

The other defendants were identified as Dr. Somsri Ratanaprasatporn, 75, of Staten Island, a pediatrician and general practitioner, and her office manager, Smith, 54, of Brooklyn, who allegedly issued the prescriptions out of an office on Linden Boulevard in Brooklyn; and Bassam Amin, 69, and Yousef Ennab, 25, both of Brooklyn, and Omar Elsayed, 28, of Hackensack, New Jersey, who are pharmacists who allegedly filled the prescriptions at pharmacies in Brooklyn and Staten Island.

All were charged with conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute oxycodone and related crimes.

Smith and Kent also were charged with money laundering in connection with their alleged efforts to hide the proceeds of their illegal oxycodone distribution operation.

The charges were a result of an ongoing Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force investigation, led by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of New York and the Drug Enforcement Agency.

Oxycodone is a highly addictive opioid that is used to treat severe and chronic pain conditions.

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According to prosecutors, every year millions of Americans abuse oxycodone. The misuse of oxycodone and other prescription painkillers leads to hundreds of thousands of emergency room visits each year. More than 16,000 Americans died from prescription opioid overdoses in 2020.

According to the U.S. Attorney's office, the eight defendants combined to distribute more than 11,000 prescriptions for oxycodone, amounting to 1.2 million pills, which carried a street value of at least $24 million. The distribution allegedly happened between December 2018 and this month.

All eight defendants were arrested Wednesday morning, and were scheduled to be arraigned Wednesday afternoon before U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert M. Levy.

"Doctors and medical professionals have a professional obligation to do no harm," Peace said in a statement. "But, as alleged, the defendants callously supplied more than one million pills to traffickers for distribution, resulting in dangerous opioids flooding the streets of this district. Today's charges demonstrate this office's continued commitment to stemming the availability of illegal drugs and holding to account those who contribute to the epic tragedy that is the opioid epidemic."

Mike Randall covers breaking news for the Times Herald-Record, the Poughkeepsie Journal and The Journal News/lohud. Reach him at mrandall@th-record.com or on Twitter @MikeRandall845.

This article originally appeared on Times Herald-Record: Oxycodone: Orange County man arrested in drug distribution scheme