Tampa Pain Clinic Owners and Pharmacist Indicted

Five Tampa residents were indicted this week in federal court on charges of conspiracy to illegally distribute controlled substances. Louis Fernandez, Jr., Louis Fernandez, III, Marco Beltran, Christopher Switlyk and Kimberly Curtiss each face a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison if convicted.

Beltran and Switlyk also face charges of conspiracy to commit money laundering and several counts of engaging in unlawful monetary transactions. The maximum penalty on the money laundering conspiracy charge is also 20 years in prison; the unlawful monetary transaction charges each carry a maximum sentence of 10 years in federal prison.

The Fernandezes and Beltran owned the Tampa Bay Wellness Centre and the Superior Injury Center. According to the indictment, Switlyk is a pharmacist who owns the VIP Pharmacy in Tampa. Curtiss and Beltran were employees at the VIP Pharmacy.

The government alleges that the Fernandezes and Beltran participated in fraudulent prescriptions; that Switlyk and Curtiss allowed the illegal filling of those prescriptions; and that the defendants distributed oxycodone without prescriptions at all.

The money laundering charges against Beltran and Switlyk related to payments to Infinity Abstract and Title for the purchase of a residence on Swann Avenue, in Tampa; and to the Cyber Car Store in Tampa for the purchase of a 2007 Lincoln MKX SUV.

Prescription drugs are the focus of an increasing number of federal drug investigations. Anyone who believes that they may be the subject of such an investigation in the Tampa Bay area and surrounding counties should contact a Tampa federal criminal defense attorney immediately. Much beneficial work on a case can often occur prior to the execution of an arrest warrant.

See also:

• Tampa Area Doctor Charged with Overprescribing Pain Meds
• Doctor from Tampa & St. Pete Pain Clinics Indicted on Drug Charges
• Another Tampa Area Doctor Charged with Illegal Prescriptions
• Several Arrested on Hernando Prescription Drug Charges
• Former St. Petersburg Pharmacist Pleads Guilty to Prescription Fraud