Convicted Pharmacists Ordered To Pay $5M To Fight Drug Addiction

ATLANTA, GA -- Two pharmacists who were sentenced in July as part of a pill-mill operation in Atlanta are required to fork over $5 million to help combat drug addiction in the Peach State.

Rosemary Ofume and Donatus Iriele, who were convicted earlier this year on charges they set up the illegal operation and laundered money from the scheme, have each been ordered to pay $2.5 million in community restitution, which will be paid to state agencies responsible for substance abuse treatment and victim assistance, the United States Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Georgia said.

U.S. District Judge Steve C. Jones Jones ordered the community restitution award requiring Ofume and Iriele to pay a total of $5 million under Title 18, United States Code, Section 3663(c).

The funds will be distributed to the Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities, and the Criminal Justice Coordinating Council for victims’ assistance, in restitution for the damage caused by Ofume and Iriele’s conduct. Such a restitution order is the first of its kind in the nation against pharmacists, which also recognizes the public harm diverted opiates have caused the citizens of the state, the U.S. Attorney's Office said.

The husband and wife team are the former owners of Atlanta-based Medicine Center Pharmacy. They were sentenced on July 20 to 19 and 20 years in prison, respectively, for illegally dispensing controlled narcotics to customers of the pain clinic.

“The defendants used their pharmacy to supply pills to patients of a known ‘pill mill’ and then laundered millions of dollars to conceal their crimes,” said U.S. Attorney Byung J. “BJay” Pak. “These pharmacists fed opiate addictions among so many as a means to sustain their lifestyles. Now, they will begin to serve lengthy prison sentences and pay back the state of Georgia to account for some of the harm they caused to the community. This money will go to help the individuals whose lives have been scarred by addiction.”

The case against the pharmacists began in May 2009 when DEA agents, working with the Internal Revenue Service, began investigating Atlanta-based AMARC pain clinic on Lakewood Avenue and nearby Medicine Center Pharmacy after receiving information that the clinic and pharmacy were illegitimately prescribing and dispensing pain pills to drug addicts and drug dealers.

The investigation revealed that Godfrey Ilonzo financed and operated at least eight clinics in the metro Atlanta area under the "AMARC" name, including a Lakewood pain clinic and one in Tyrone. Bona Ilonzo, Godfrey Ilonzo's wife, served as the office manager at the Lakewood AMARC pain clinic

At various times, Dr. Nevorn Askari and Dr. William Richardson served as the primary doctors for the AMARC pain clinics. Ofume and Iriele operated the Medicine Center Pharmacy across the street from one of the pain clinics. Both Godfrey and Bona Ilonzo, as well as Dr. Askari and Dr. Richardson, previously pleaded guilty to charges related to their conduct at the clinic.

Ofume and Iriele worked together with the Ilonzos and the doctors to facilitate the dispensing of oxycodone pills and other opiates to addicts and distributors. When customers received prescriptions from Askari and Richardson for "medically inappropriate and potentially lethal combinations of opiates and other controlled substances," they were told by clinic staff to fill their prescriptions across the street at "Rosemary's pharmacy," the U.S. Attorney's Office said.

Many customers traveled to the AMARC clinics and Ofume and Iriele's pharmacy from counties throughout Georgia and from other states, including Alabama and Ohio.

Customers waited for hours at the Lakewood AMARC pain clinic and paid cash to receive prescriptions for oxycodone or hydrocodone, Xanax and Soma before purchasing the pills at high prices from Ofume and Iriele's pharmacy. Employees at the AMARC clinics and Ofume and Iriele's pharmacy received discounts and special treatment, including free office visits and reduced prices for pills dispensed at the pharmacy.

Ofume lied to pharmaceutical distributors in order to procure astronomical quantities of oxycodone and other prescription pain pills that were then dispensed to customers having obvious signs of addiction or drug diversion. Between 2009 and 2012, Medicine Center Pharmacy purchased 1.3 million opioid pills. Significantly, in 2009, the pharmacy purchased eleven times more oxycodone than the average pharmacy in the state of Georgia.

Throughout the conspiracy, Ofume and Iriele generated more than $5.1 million from unlawful prescriptions issued by doctors affiliated with the AMARC clinics. Iriele used the pharmacy proceeds to buy three luxury vehicles for him and his wife's personal use. The couple also laundered pharmacy proceeds by purchasing vehicles in the U.S. for individuals in Nigeria, while those customers then deposited local Nigerian currency into Iriele's own Nigerian bank account.

In 2007, the Georgia Board of Pharmacy had revoked Iriele’s pharmacy license (and temporarily suspended Ofume’s pharmacy license) after finding that they had failed to account for more than 600,000 controlled substances pills at their pharmacies and had dispensed controlled substances pursuant to more than 1,400 forged prescriptions.

Iriele, 63, of Atlanta was sentenced on July 20, 2017, by U.S. District Judge Steve C. Jones to 20 years in prison, followed by three years of supervised release. Ofume, 59, also of Atlanta, was sentenced by Judge Jones on the same day, to 19 years in prison, followed by three years of supervised release.

Ofume and Iriele were convicted on March 24 after a three-week jury trial on federal drug and money laundering charges in connection with their operation. Based on the convictions, Ofume and Iriele were ordered to forfeit $16,767 in cash seized from the pharmacy; $133,892.74 in funds seized from the pharmacy's bank account; a 2009 BMW X5; a 2008 Mercedes Benz ML550; a 2007 BMW X5; and Ofume's Georgia pharmacist license.

This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Laurel Boatright, Cassandra Schansman and Michael Brown prosecuted the case.

"It is a sad commentary when trusted individuals in the medical community hide behind the veil of legitimacy to commit criminal acts," said Daniel R. Salter, the special agent in charge of the DEA Atlanta Field Division said. "These pharmacists can no longer fill the opiate cravings of pill-seeking addicts with impunity. Owners and operators of pill mills spin a broad web of deception, reeling in casts of thousands who are addicted to pharmaceutical drugs. This investigation was a success because of the spirited level of law enforcement cooperation."

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