Ohio Doctor Accused Of Running Pill Mill, Distributing Opioids

YOUNGSTOWN, OH — A Mahoning County doctor has been indicted by a federal grand jury. He is accused of operating a "pill mill," distributing large amounts of opioids, the Department of Justice said.

Two of the doctor's patients died from drug-related complications, the 145-count indictment returned against 57-year-old Martin Escobar said. The Youngstown doctor is accused in the indictment of unlawful distribution and dispensation of controlled substances, causing the deaths of two patients, health care fraud and more.

“Every time a pill mill grinds to a halt, Ohio moves closer to ending this crisis,” Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost said.

Between March 2015 and May 2019, Escobar prescribed opioids, like oxycodone and hydrocodone, and other controlled substances to patients, the indictment said. He would prescribe the opioids in combination with benzodiazepines and stimulants, prosecutors added. These prescriptions were not given for legitimate medical reasons, federal prosecutors argued.

The indictment says Escobar's prescriptions played a part in the deaths of two of his patients in 2015 and 2016.

“All physicians are expected to uphold specific ethical standards to do no harm, but Dr. Escobar, who took the Hippocratic oath to become a physician, is accused of falsifying medical records, prescribing unnecessary controlled substances subsequently causing two deaths, among other charges,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge Eric Smith.

The indictment says Escobar would write false diagnoses to prescribe the substances, would falsify patient pain levels in medical charts and would ignore the results of a patients' urine drug screen.

Escobar would test the urine of his patients for controlled substances and would then bill the government for these tests, the indictment said. After getting the results, Escobar would ignore the results, which would indicate the absence of prescribed drugs in the urine, according to the indictment. That meant patients were possibly selling the substances, and not using them as prescribed, the complaint said.

The DEA and FBI led the investigation into Escobar. Law enforcement took the doctor into custody in November 2019. The Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General, the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit of the Ohio Attorney General’s Office, and the Ohio Board of Pharmacy all contributed to the investigation.