Dentist Charged With Fraud in Alleged Prescription Drug Plot

BROOKLINE, MA – A Cambridge dentist was arraigned Monday for allegedly prescribing medication to at least two employees and receiving it back for his own use, according to the Middlesex County District Attorney's office.

Maurice Zylber, 70, of Brookline, is charged with seven counts of obtaining a drug by fraud in the plot.

Last December, a former employee of Zylber's told Cambridge Police that he was reportedly prescribing painkillers to employees of his practice, who would then fill the prescriptions and return them to Zylber. The employee alleged that she filled about 10 prescriptions per year for Zylber for 15 years, fearing she would lose her job if she refused, according to the Middlesex County District Attorney's office.

She told police that when she did not comply with one of Zylber's requests, she was allegedly fired from her job. Police also located a second former employee, who had allegedly been filling prescriptions for Zylber before she was fired, the DA's office said.

"At a time when the opioid crisis continues to escalate, the defendant in this case allegedly used his ability as a dentist to prescribe pain killers for his own personal use," Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan said in a press release. "This type of alleged behavior by a healthcare professional highlights the challenges that law enforcement encounters when working to prevent opioid abuse."

Zylber was released on personal recognizance; his next scheduled hearing is October 6.

This report was written with information supplied by the Middlesex County District Attorney's office. The defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty.