Former West Orange Pharmacist Admits to Fraud Scheme, Painkiller Distribution

The former pharmarcist-in-charge of West Orange Pharmacy admitted to illegally distributing hundreds of tablets of Oxycontin in exchange for thousands of dollars in cash, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman said.

Leonard “Lenny” Stefanelli, 49, of East Hanover, pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Michael A. Hammer in Newark to illegally dispensing oxycodone, which is sold as Oxycontin. Stefanelli also admitted to the prior crime of conspiring with brothers Robert and William Carlucci, both 70 and of Florham Park, to submit fraudulent bills to health care benefit providers, including Medicare and Medicaid.

Stefanelli agreed to forfeit $1.5 million, consisting of illegal profits obtained from his illegal sales of oxycodone and his submission of fraudulent bills to health care benefit providers.

From Feb. 1 to Aug. 6, 2012, on at least six separate occasions, Stefanelli sold hundreds of tablets of Oxycontin to an individual, without a prescription, in exchange for cash. Each sale took place inside West Orange Pharmacy, the prosecutor's office said. 

Between 1992 and October 2012, Stefanelli conspired with Robert and William Carlucci to submit fraudulent bills to health care benefit providers, including Medicaid and Medicare, reaping at least $921,634 from his scheme.

Robert and William Carlucci previously pleaded guilty to committing health care fraud by participating in a variety of schemes designed to cheat customers and bilk insurance companies out of millions of dollars. They are both scheduled to be sentenced on Feb. 27.
 
Stefanelli could get a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $1,000,000 for the narcotics distribution charge. His sentencing is April 30.