Tuesday, December 4, 2012
The Hellertown Pharmacy remains open, in spite of the fact that two of its pharmacists are accused of participating in a multi-million dollar prescription fraud scheme.
Relationships between pharmacists and customers are based upon trust. Two local druggists, however, are accused of breaching the trust of their clientele. Last week, Hellertown Pharmacy employees Lena Lasher, 45, and Peter Riccio, 59, were indicted by federal authorities on charges related to an alleged multi-million dollar, international prescription fraud scheme that revolved around the online sale of addictive painkillers. In March of this year, North Dakota authorities accused them of engaging in a similar operation. The charges announced last week were made public after the Hellertown Pharmacy--which opened with a highly-publicized celebration nearly two years ago--was raided Nov. 29 by agents for the FBI, DEA and IRS, much to the …
40.56753
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Hellertown Pharmacy
11 Main St, Hellertown, PA
/articles/tell-us-will-you-shop-at-pharmacy-that-was-raided
1830019
/locations/8287262
Friday, November 30, 2012
Hellertown pharmacists Lena Lasher and Peter Riccio have been accused of participating in a multi-million dollar prescription fraud scheme, according to numerous published reports.
The all-day raid that took place at Hellertown Pharmacy Thursday was part of a federal investigation into an alleged multi-million dollar online prescription fraud scheme that spanned two years, according to multiple published reports. The Morning Call has reported that two pharmacists from the local drugstore--Lena Lasher, 45, also known as Lena Congtang, and 59-year-old Peter Riccio--are named in an indictment that was unsealed in a federal court in Manhattan. The indictment alleges that Lasher and Riccio conspired with website operators and physicians in other states and countries to write prescriptions for addictive painkillers without following proper protocol--and the law. According to WFMZ Channel 69 News, Lasher and Riccio were …
40.56753
-75.339777
Hellertown Pharmacy
11 Main St, Hellertown, PA
/articles/pharmacists-were-part-of-fraud-scheme-reports-say
1830019
/locations/8261554
A March 2012 article published by Bakken Today--which covers western North Dakota--says the North Dakota Board of Pharmacy took action against Hellertown Pharmacy for illegally selling the painkiller Tramadol to residents.
Thursday, November 29, 2012
A March 2012 article published by Bakken Today--which covers western North Dakota--says the North Dakota Board of Pharmacy took action against Hellertown Pharmacy for illegally selling the painkiller Tramadol to residents.
In spite of extensive media coverage--including several reports that aired on WFMZ Channel 69 News--details about Thursday's apparent raid by federal agents at Hellertown Pharmacy remain scarce. However, a news article published in March of this year indicates that this was not the borough business's first brush with the law. The March 22, 2012 article by Patrick Springer, "North Dakota Cracking Down on Illegal Web Prescriptions," was published by Bakken Today, which bills itself as an "online source for western North Dakota and oil news." According to the story, Hellertown Pharmacy was one of three out-of-state pharmacies that illegally sold the painkiller Tramadol to North Dakota residents. Specifically, the local drugstore was accused …
40.56753
-75.339777
Hellertown Pharmacy
11 Main St, Hellertown, PA
/articles/report-hellertown-pharmacy-illegally-sold-painkiller
1830019
/locations/8255759
Beverly Wolf
12:25 pm on Tuesday, December 4, 2012
I never was in the store and don't know if I want to. If there are innocent people working there, I feel sorry for them but who would want to work for someone of this quality. Innocent until proven guilty----unless someone was breaking into the pharmacy when no one was around, I think all the data collected speaks for itself and I see now reason to give people like this my money. Thank you more ›