DEA: Riverhead Physician Assistant Arrested for Conspiracy to Illegally Prescribe Oxycodone
Michael Troyan, 37, of Riverhead, a physician assistant who operated two urgent care clinics on the East End of Long Island, was arrested Thursday morning pursuant to a grand jury indictment, with conspiring to illegally distribute oxycodone, a highly addictive prescription pain medication, according to the federal Drug Enforcement Agency.
Also Thursday morning, a search warrant was executed at the East End Urgent and Primary Care in Riverhead by the DEA’s Long Island Tactical Diversion Squad, which comprises agents and officers of the DEA, Nassau County Police Department, Rockville Centre Police Department and Port Washington Police Department. The Long Island Tactical Diversion Squad was also assisted by agents and officers of the Department of Health & Human Services, the Southampton Town Police Department and the Suffolk County District Attorney’s East End Drug Taskforce. The defendant was scheduled to be arraigned Thursday afternoon before United States Magistrate Judge Gary R. Brown at the United States Courthouse in Central Islip.
The charges were announced by James J. Hunt, a DEA special agent in charge for New York, and Robert L. Capers, the United States attorney for the Eastern District of New York.
“People who are addicted to opioid painkillers are 40 times more likely to be addicted to heroin,” Hunt said. “Cashing in on heroin’s hold over American communities, it is alleged that Michael Troyan wrote prescriptions to oxycodone dealers on the East End in exchange for half the cash profits from the resulting drug sales. DEA and our law enforcement partners will continue to identify the diverted painkiller suppliers, be it an oxy street dealer, a rogue doctor, or a greedy physician’s assistant.”
Capers added, “As alleged, Troyan abused his authority to prescribe controlled substances and his position of trust as a physician assistant to illegally sell oxycodone in exchange for cash. Such abuse by health care professionals will not be tolerated.”
According to the DEA, the indictment and public filings allege that between November 2011 and October 2015, Troyan issued prescriptions for thousands of oxycodone pills to co-conspirators for the purpose of illegally re-selling the pills for cash. Troyan was captured on video in an undercover operation writing phony prescriptions for oxycodone and receiving large quantities of cash at his Riverhead medical office for prior illegal sales, the DEA stated. Troyan was receiving half of the profit from the sale of the oxycodone pills, the agency alleges.
If convicted, Troyan faces a maximum sentence of 20 years’ imprisonment and a $1 million fine.
Assistant United States Attorney Allen Bode is in charge of the prosecution.