MIAMI – A Miami man pleaded guilty yesterday for his role in a conspiracy to distribute over 87,000 oxycodone 30mg pills.
According to court documents and statements made in court, Jose Llerena, 49, of Miami, conspired with others, including Olushola Yusuf — a pharmacist and pharmacy owner convicted at trial earlier this year for illegally dispensing over 300,000 oxycodone 30mg pills — to illegally distribute oxycodone to individuals who had no medical need for the drug. Llerena was a “patient recruiter” who paid individuals to pose as patients and obtain illegal and unnecessary oxycodone prescriptions from South Florida clinics and doctors. Llerena then took his recruits and their illegal prescriptions to Yusuf’s pharmacies in order to get the pills. Yusuf kept a list of Llerena’s recruits at her pharmacy. Llerena paid Yusuf cash for the drug at above market value.
“More than 87,000 oxycodone pills were diverted through this conspiracy, feeding addiction and putting dangerous drugs onto our streets,” said U.S. Attorney Jason A. Reding Quiñones. “Jose Llerena recruited fake patients, paid them for their pills, and resold those pills for profit. Those who exploit our health care system to traffic opioids will be identified, prosecuted, and held accountable.”
Llerena then paid his recruits, usually via Zelle, for the oxycodone pills before reselling the pills on the street. Llerena was personally responsible for distributing 3,735 oxycodone pills.
Llerena pled guilty to conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance. A sentencing date has not been set. Llerena faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Assistant Attorney General Colin M. McDonald of the Justice Department’s National Fraud Enforcement Division; U.S. Attorney Reding Quiñones; Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG) Acting Deputy Inspector General for Investigations Miranda Bennett; DEA Special Agent in Charge Miles Aley, Miami Field Division; and FBI Special Agent in Charge Brett Skiles made the announcement.
HHS-OIG, DEA, and FBI investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jacqueline DerOvanesian for the Southern District of Florida and Trial Attorney Angela Benoit of the Fraud Division’s Health Care Fraud Section are prosecuting the case.
The Department of Justice’s Health Care Fraud Strike Force Program, currently comprised of nine strike forces operating in federal districts across the country, has charged more than 6,200 defendants who collectively billed federal health care programs and private insurers more than $45 billion since 2007. In addition, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the Office of the Inspector General for the Department of Health and Human Services, are taking steps to hold providers accountable for their involvement in health care fraud schemes. More information can be found at www.justice.gov/criminal-fraud/health-care-fraud-unit.
On April 7, the Department of Justice announced the creation of the National Fraud Enforcement Division. The core mission of the Fraud Division is to zealously investigate and prosecute those who steal or fraudulently misuse taxpayer dollars. Department of Justice efforts to combat fraud support President Trump’s Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, a whole-of-government effort chaired by Vice President J.D. Vance to eliminate fraud, waste, and abuse within Federal benefit programs.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case numbers 26-cr-60247.
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Contact
Public Affairs Unit
U.S. Attorney’s Office
Southern District of Florida
USAFLS.News@usdoj.gov
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