CLARKSBURG, W. Va. — The mayor of Bridgeport has been indicted on charges that he dispensed prescription painkillers outside the scope of his professional practice as a pharmacist.
US Attorney William J. Ihlenfeld, II announced that Mario Blount was arrested Tuesday in Weston on charges of conspiracy to possess and distribute schedule II controlled substances, distribution of oxycodone and failure to report the filling of a prescription.
“We perused this because I was personally concerend that Mr. Blount was knowingly and willfully engaged in activities that violated state and federal laws and regulations in the practice of pharmacy,” Ihlenfeld said.
Blount, who is employed by Best Care Pharmacy as the chief pharmacist, is alleged to have conspired with two other individuals over the last three years to distribute prescription painkillers for non-legitimate medical purposes.
The Greater Harrison County Drug Task Force executed search warrants in October 2013 at Best Care pharmacy locations in the West Virginia towns of Bridgeport, Lumberport and Belington.
Blount no longer operated the Bridgeport Best Care, and had been working at the Weston operation at the time of the arrest.
The evidence gathered during those searches was used to bring charges against Blount and his coconspirators.
“We became aware of some questionable areas of the filling practices of Mr. Blount,” Ihlenfeld said. “With the information that we obtained during those searches, we were able to go off in a different direction and investigate whether or not Mr. Blount was engaged in illegal activity.”
The investigation and previous investigations conducted as a cooperative operation between the task force and the Drug Enforcement Administration revealed the scope of the alleged crimes.
“Over approximately three years, Blount illegally dispensed over 11,000 oxycodone and oxymorphone pills,” Karl Colder, Special Agent in Charge, Drug Enforcement Administration, Washington D.C. Field Division said. “[Monday’s} arrests are the culmination of a ten month investigation, which truly exemplifies the strong working partnership between DEA and the Greater Harrison County Drug Task Force.”
Angela Davis, also of Bridgeport, W. Va. and her daughter, April Davis of Marietta, Ga., are charged with conspiring with Blount to possess and distribute oxycodone and other prescription painkillers. Angela Davis has also been charged with attempting to fraudulently obtain controlled
substances and with the attempted distribution of oxycodone.
“These arrests serve as a warning that the illicit distribution of controlled substances will not be tolerated in Harrison County,” Colder said.
The problem of prescription abuse is not a new one to the region or the state.
After three deaths directly related to overdose of painkillers in 2010 and 2011, Dr. Edita Milan of Fairmont was charged last July in a pill mill case, only weeks after the Drug Task Force and DEA had raided her Bridgeport office. Several others also have been added to the investigation, and their trials are pending in federal court.
This pill mill case lead to the raids of the Best Care Pharmacy locations and Ihlenfled said he belives the two cases are connected.
“There are medical professionals across the country, it’s not just a Harrison County, West Virginia problem, across the country who are prescribing pills to these people receiving cash to see the patients, to write prescriptions and then sending them to certain pharmacies to have those prescriptions filled.”
Blount faces up to 20 years in prison on the conspiracy and distribution charges and up to 4 years on the failure to report a prescription charge.
Angela Davis and April Davis each face up to 20 years in prison.
Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines the actual sentence imposed will be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant. The charges contained in the Indictment are accusations and each defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
The case will be prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney, John C. Parr and arraignments have been estimated to take place Tuesday afternoon.