Three individuals are currently facing criminal charges for using stolen doctor IDs and hacking federal networks to obtain prescription cough medication.#Minnesota #News #St. Paul, Minnesota #Crime
Three males from Minnesota and Wisconsin have been charged with federal offenses related to a fraud to obtain prescription medicines unlawfully in St. Paul, Minnesota. The guys are charged with obtaining banned medications, such as the opioid-based cough medicine promethazine with codeine, by stealing doctor’s identity numbers. After months of investigation, the conspiracy was discovered by the authorities.
The Scheme Behind the Fraud
From December 2022 to August 2023, the three defendants—Oscar Becerra-Ruiz, 21, Jasper William Johnson, 19, and Rayjaun Keon Varner, 23—allegedly collaborated to steal medical records and take advantage of government systems. Getting prescription medications that are ordinarily strictly restricted was their obvious objective.
The men pretended to be doctors in order to obtain restricted substances using doctor IDs that had been stolen. The main focus of their illicit activity was acquiring promethazine with codeine, a drug that is usually given to treat coughs but is also frequently abused due to its opioid content.
Fraudulent Methods and Digital Manipulation
Investigators claim that the men obtained private information regarding licensed physicians in Wisconsin and Minnesota by using internet services. Johnson is accused of using this data to breach a federal system that safeguards patient data and prescription records. He changed several doctors’ contact information, rerouting official correspondence to his controlled phone numbers and email addresses.
The group then made fictitious accounts with online pharmaceutical wholesalers using the stolen data. They used digital payment accounts and prepaid debit cards, all registered in the names of the targeted physicians, to place orders for prescription medications.
Legal Charges and Investigation Results
The three individuals are facing a number of significant allegations from federal officials, including computer fraud, wire fraud, and conspiracy to obtain restricted narcotics by fraud. Johnson is also charged with several counts of aggravated identity theft.
The case is still pending and the men have not yet been arraigned. Investigators have verified that no patient data was exposed, even though the operation entailed swiping doctor credentials.
RELATED TOPICS: Minnesota, Wisconsin, and crime
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