TRENTON
- Attorney General Paula T. Dow and Criminal
Justice Director Stephen J. Taylor announced
that a Jersey City man was sentenced to
state prison today for distributing OxyContin
pills in a school zone on three occasions
last year.
According to Acting Insurance
Fraud Prosecutor Riza Dagli, Raymond Bremner,
43, of Jersey City, was sentenced to six
years in state prison, including 33 months
of parole ineligibility, by Superior Court
Judge Kevin G. Callahan in Hudson County.
Bremner pleaded guilty on Feb. 8 to distribution
of narcotics, two counts of distribution
of narcotics within 500 feet of a public
park, and three counts of distribution of
narcotics within 1,000 feet of a school.
Four counts were filed by accusation and
the remaining counts were part of an Aug.
29, 2009 indictment.
In pleading guilty, Bremner
admitted that on three occasions in 2009
- on May 14, Oct. 3 and Oct. 12 - he distributed
OxyContin pills in Jersey City. On all three
occasions, he was within 1,000 feet of a
school, and on both occasions in October
he was within 500 feet of a public park,
Sergeant Anthony Park. The transaction in
May involved over one-half ounce of OxyContin.
Bremner’s plea resulted
from Operation MedScam, an ongoing investigation
by the Office of the Insurance Fraud Prosecutor’s
Medicaid Fraud Control Unit and the Jersey
City Police Department’s Special Investigation
Unit. Since October, more than 32 people,
including doctors and pharmacists, have
been arrested in the joint investigation,
which uncovered a major criminal narcotics
network based in Hudson County that distributed
thousands of black market prescription pain
pills such as OxyContin and Percocet. The
network was obtaining fraudulent narcotics
prescriptions and filling them at various
pharmacies. At the same time, Medicaid was
being billed for phony doctor visits and
prescription medicines that were never dispensed.
Detective Kevin Gannon and
Deputy Attorneys General Cynthia Vazquez
and Debra A. Conrad were assigned to the
investigation into this case for OIFP’s
Medicaid Fraud Control Unit. Deputy Attorneys
General Conrad and Vazquez prosecuted the
case and represented the Office of the Insurance
Fraud Prosecutor at the sentencing.
The network allegedly distributed
the prescription pain pills throughout Hudson
County and other parts of the state, including
Bergen, Ocean, Morris and Monmouth counties.
A single 30 milligram OxyContin pill, known
as a “blue,” typically sells
for $10 to $20 on the street, while a 10
milligram Percocet pill sells for $5 to
$8.
The Medicaid program, which
is funded by the state and federal governments,
provides health care services and prescription
drugs to persons who may not otherwise be
able to afford such services and medicines.
The State of New Jersey administers the
Medicaid program through the Division of
Medical Assistance and Health Services and
through the Office of the Insurance Fraud
Prosecutor’s Medicaid Fraud Control
Unit, which investigates both criminal and
civil Medicaid fraud and abuse in that program.
Anyone
with information about fraud or abuse involving
the Medicaid program or Medicaid providers
is urged to call the Medicaid Fraud Control
Unit toll free at 1-877-55-FRAUD
or visit www.NJInsuranceFraud.org.
All information received will remain confidential.
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