A Tennessee doctor faces spending the next 30 years in prison after he was charged with illegally distributing large amounts of opioids and submitting fraudulent insurance claims.
Dr. Samson Orusa of Clarksville was recently hit with federal indictments of 22 counts of “unlawful distribution of a controlled substance outside the bounds of professional medical practice,” as well 13 counts of money laundering.
Source: Facebook
The Middle District of Tennessee U.S. Attorney Dan Cochran said Orusa opened up his practice for the very purpose of distributing the drugs, as opposed to running it with the sole intention of curing ailments.
“Anyone who contributes to the opioid epidemic plaguing this nation should expect to be targeted by our law enforcement partners and held accountable,” said Cochran.
Orusa has served as a pastor at God’s Sanctuary Church International for nearly 20 years. The church has delivered medical supplies to residents in Africa through several mission trips, reports WSMV.
Authorities say that in 2015 an Orusa prescribed a muscle relaxer called Soma, as well as alprazolam for anxiety, and the drug oxymorphone — three drugs which in combination have been called “The Holy Trinity” for their dangerous nature when taken as a group — to a patient without performing an exam. The patient prescribed this cocktail died from an overdose of the combination, authorities claim.
Orusa has also been accused of taking money he received from opioid distribution and transferring it to foreign accounts to hide it.
“The arrest of Dr. Orusa should serve as a warning to all doctors who fail to practice medicine in an ethical and responsible manner,” said Special Agent Christopher Evans of the Drug Enforcement Administration. “The men and women of DEA are committed to using every available resource to stop the flow of drugs into our communities, especially when the drug dealer is a physician.”
Per Orusa’s Facebook page, obtained degrees from Columbia University College of Medicine and Surgery in New York and at the University of Benin in Benin City, Nigeria. According to his Nashville lawyer, Orusa will fight the charges. He faces up to 20 years in prison for each drug-related count and up to 10 years in prison for the other charges.
