A wholesale drug distributor linked to the flood of opioids into Appalachia and two of its former executives were charged with conspiring to illegally distribute millions of painkiller pills, federal authorities said Thursday.
The former executives of Ohio-based Miami-Luken — the president and compliance officer — along with two pharmacists in West Virginia were indicted by a federal grand jury in Cincinnati, said U.S. Attorney Benjamin Glassman. The conspiracy allegedly involved pharmacies from Portsmouth, Ohio, along the Ohio River to rural towns through West Virginia and Kentucky, a region particularly hard-hit by painkiller overprescribing and overuse.
Glassman said authorities mean to "hold accountable" anyone criminally involved at any point in drug distribution.
Benjamin Glassman, United States Attorney of the Southern District of Ohio, speaks during a news conference, Thursday, July 18, 2019, in Cincinnati. Federal authorities say Miami-Luken, an Ohio-based wholesale drug distributor that's been linked before to the opioid drug crisis, has been charged in a painkiller pill conspiracy cases. (AP PhotoJohn Minchillo)
"If you are intentionally violating the law, you can and should and will face justice regardless of where you are," Glassman said. "Whether you are on the street corner or in a boardroom."
Prescription opioid statistics made public this week underscored how pill distribution soared as the nation's overdose epidemic grew.
Miami-Luken distributed 120 million pills from 2006 through 2012, according to newly public federal data published by The Washington Post.
Benjamin Glassman, United States Attorney of the Southern District of Ohio, speaks during a news conference, Thursday, July 18, 2019, in Cincinnati. Federal authorities say Miami-Luken, an Ohio-based wholesale drug distributor that's been linked before to the opioid drug crisis, has been charged in a painkiller pill conspiracy cases. (AP PhotoJohn Minchillo)
An Associated Press analysis found that 11.4 million of those pills, or nearly 10%, went to Mingo County, West Virginia, an area with a population of about 24,000. The company was the top opioid pill distributor in the county over that stretch; it was in the top five of only one neighboring county, Kentucky's Martin County, where the company distributed 574,000 pills over that span.
Richard Blake, an attorney who has previously represented Miami-Luken, said Thursday he was unaware of the charges.
There was no answer Thursday at the phone number listed for the company in Springboro, a suburban city 18 miles (29 kilometers) south of Dayton. The Dayton Daily News reported earlier this year that the company was in the process of dissolving amid mounting legal problems
Miami-Luken has been named in lawsuits pending before a federal judge in Cleveland. More than 2,000 state, local and tribal governments have sued members of the drug industry. West Virginia's attorney general in 2016 settled a lawsuit for $2.5 million against Miami-Luken, resolving allegations that the company failed to detect, report and stop the flood of suspicious drug orders into the state.
As part of the settlement, Miami-Luken was required to report suspicious orders to West Virginia State Police and the attorney general's office within 72 hours of discovering them.
"Today's announcement represents yet another step in law enforcement's continuing effort to fight this epidemic," West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey said in a statement.
Federal authorities identified the indicted as:
— Miami-Luken's former president, Anthony Rattini, 71, of Colorado Springs, Colorado.
— Miami-Luken's former compliance officer, James Barclay, 72, of Springboro.
— Samuel "Randy" Ballengee, 54, of Lovely, Kentucky, identified as a pharmacist who owned Tug Valley Pharmacy in Williamson, West Virginia.
— Devonna Miller-West, 49, of Oceana, West Virginia, identified as a pharmacist who owned Westside Pharmacy.
Barclay remained at large Thursday, Glassman said, while the other three were arrested without incident and will face a court appearance in Cincinnati later this month. They each face up to 20 years in prison if convicted.
Investigators have said that as early as 2011, Miami-Luken was aware that the Westside Pharmacy in Oceana (population 1,394) was filling prescriptions for doctors located hours away, and that a large number of prescriptions for hydrocodone and oxycodone were paid for with cash. Yet, congressional findings said the company continued to supply the pharmacy with more than 3.36 million opioids over the next four years.
Glassman said Miami-Luken allegedly distributed more than 3.7 million hydrocodone pills in 2008-2011 to an unnamed pharmacy in Kermit, West Virginia (population around 400).
Several other pharmacies were mentioned but not named in the indictment, and Glassman said investigations are continuing across the region.
"It looks like a war zone down here," Perry County, Kentucky, Sheriff Joseph Engle said Wednesday after release of federal data showed that on average, 175 pills a year per person were distributed in Perry County during the period covered.
Associated Press writers John Raby in Charleston, West Virginia; Claire Galofaro in Louisville, Kentucky; Goff Mulvihill in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, Matthew Perrone in Washington D.C.; John Seewer in Toledo, Ohio, and Kantele Franko, Julie Carr Smyth and Andrew Welsh-Huggins in Columbus contributed to this report.
Here’s a rundown of the AP’s latest Election 2024 coverage plans, including live video and text plans, our explanatory journalism and highlights from previous cycles. Candidate schedules are included when available. All times are EDT.
You can find US Election 2024-The Daily Rundown in your CMS or in AP Newsroom.
For up-to-the-minute information on AP’s coverage, visit AP Newsroom’s Coverage Plan. Find our election coverage in the U.S. Elections hub in AP Newsroom.
To sign up for our Politics Advisory, delivered afternoons Monday through Friday to your inbox, click here.
SUPREME COURT-TRUMP-CAPITOL RIOT — AP Explains the latest election subversion case before the Supreme Court: Whether Donald Trump is immune from prosecution in a case charging him with plotting to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election. Includes an AP reporter debrief from last week's hearing on whether federal prosecutors went too far in bringing obstruction charges against hundreds of participants in the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot. Newsroom Ready and Consumer Ready edits sent on April 16.
ELECTION 2024-US TERRITORIES — What to know about living in U.S. territories ahead of the 2024 election. Newsroom Ready and Consumer Ready edits.
7 a.m. — Live US Network Pool Cameras and Live AP Cameras outside the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington where justices are hearing arguments on presidential immunity. Live cameras on protesters amid supporters outside, along with live reaction from lawyers. Audio livestream also booked.
7 a.m. — Live AP Camera coverage outside of Trump Tower in New York is planned.
8:30 a.m. — Live NY Trump Pool coverage outside of the courthouse in New York is planned.
ELECTION 2024-PENNSYLVANIA-HALEY — When Nikki Haley suspended her presidential campaign, she refused to endorse Donald Trump as the last remaining major candidate for the 2024 Republican nomination — and so did some of her supporters in Pennsylvania. SENT: 480 words, photo.
BIDEN-FUNDRAISER — President Joe Biden is scheduled to attend a campaign fundraiser in Irvington, New York, on Thursday night. Hosts include Michael Douglas and Catherine Zeta-Jones. AP does not expect this event to be open to the media, but it will be traveling with the president and it will provide video edits and Live coverage if there is breaking news.
ELECTION 2024-DECISION NOTES-PUERTO RICO — Puerto Rico will hold a Democratic presidential primary Sunday, the only opportunity for Democrats on the island to officially weigh in on the race for the White House. Sent April 24: 970 words, photos.
SUPREME COURT-TRUMP-CAPITOL RIOT — Supreme Court justices seem to agree on a basic truth about the American system of government: No one is above the law, not even the president. But former President Donald Trump and his legal team are putting that truth to the test when the high court takes up Trump’s bid to avoid prosecution over his efforts to overturn his 2020 election loss to President Joe Biden. SENT: 780 words, photo. UPCOMING: 1,100 words after 10 a.m. arguments. With TRUMP-CAPITOL RIOT-LISTENERS’ GUIDE — What to listen for during Supreme Court arguments on Trump and presidential immunity. Sent April 24.
TRUMP-HUSH MONEY — A judge is weighing whether to hold Donald Trump in contempt of court for what prosecutors say have been repeated violations of the gag order in his hush money criminal trial. Jurors are also expected to hear more testimony from David Pecker, the former publisher of the National Enquirer, about the tabloid’s involvement in a scheme to benefit Trump. SENT: 650 words, photos. UPCOMING: 990 words after trial resumes at 9:30 a.m.
BIDEN — President Biden heads to upstate New York to tout his administration’s efforts to promote computer chip manufacturing in the U.S. SENT: 760 words, photos. UPCOMING: Speech at 2 p.m. Video edits and Live planned.
FAKE ELECTORS-INDICTMENT-ARIZONA — An Arizona grand jury has indicted former President Donald Trump ’s chief of staff Mark Meadows, lawyer Rudy Giuliani and 16 others for their efforts to use so-called fake electors to try to overturn Trump’s loss to Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential election. SENT: 1,200 words, photos, audio. With ELECTION 2020-MICHIGAN-FAKE ELECTORS — Investigator said Trump, allies were uncharged co-conspirators in plot to overturn Michigan election.
ELECTION 2024-BIDEN-TIKTOK — President Joe Biden’s signing of legislation that could ban TikTok in the U.S. runs counter to his campaign’s embrace of the platform and outreach to influencers. The president is also facing criticism from some avid users of the app. SENT: 1,300 words, photos.
ELECTION-2024-BIDEN-UNION — President Joe Biden picked up the endorsement of North America’s Building Trades Unions where the president and his allies set out to dismantle Republican Donald Trump’s reputation as a successful real estate developer. SENT: 380 words, photos, audio.
Sun., April 28 — Puerto Rico Democratic presidential primary.
May 7 — Indiana presidential primary.
May 14 — Maryland presidential primary, Nebraska presidential primary and West Virginia presidential primary.
May 21 — California 20th Congressional District special election, Kentucky presidential primary, Oregon presidential primary.
May 23 — Idaho Democratic Caucuses.
For coverage and planning questions, the Nerve Center can be reached at +1 800 845 8450 (ext. 1600). For access to AP Newsroom and other technical issues, contact apcustomersupport@ap.org or call +1 844 777 2006.
President Joe Biden speaks before signing a $95 billion Ukraine aid package that also includes support for Israel, Taiwan, and other allies, in the State Dining Room of the White House, Wednesday, April 24, 2024, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
