Crime & Safety

RPV Doctor Arrested in Prescription Drug Abuse Case

A Rancho Palos Verdes allegedly sold prescriptions to undercover officers.

A Rancho Palos Verdes doctor was arrested today on a warrant charging him with illegally prescribing drugs to undercover operatives working with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.

Dr. Richard Seongjun Kim, 42, is scheduled to be arraigned Thursday on 21 felony counts of unlawful controlled substance prescription.

The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office alleges that Kim illegally prescribed narcotics without a legitimate medical need to undercover operatives working with the DEA last year.

Find out what's happening in Palos Verdesfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

Kim, a general practitioner, allegedly wrote prescriptions for the pain medication Norco, anti-anxiety medication Xanax and muscle relaxant Soma over a three-month period for the operatives without conducting a physical examination, taking any vital signs or completing any medical charts at his clinic on Western Avenue in Rancho Palos Verdes.

Prosecutors allege that Kim would ask the operatives to bring in prior medical charts and X-rays to justify the prescriptions. In one instance, an operative brought in an X-ray of a dog’s chest, according to prosecutors.

Find out what's happening in Palos Verdesfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

Kim was being held in lieu of $100,000 bail.

If convicted as charged, he could face up to 16 years and four months in local custody, according to the District Attorney’s Office.

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