San Diego physician Jennings Staley sentenced in hydroxychloroquine scheme

In March and April of 2020, as the coronavirus spread and folks isolated of their houses, a physician in San Diego boasted that he had his hands on a “miracle cure,” according to prosecutors — hydroxychloroquine.

In mass-marketing emails from his business, Skinny Seaside Med Spa, Jennings Ryan Staley stated the drug was included in his coronavirus “remedy kits,” regardless of the medication turning into more and more scarce. But Staley had a manner of getting it, he later advised an undercover federal agent. He planned to smuggle in a barrel of hydroxychloroquine powder with the assistance of a Chinese provider, prosecutors stated.

Staley was sentenced final week to 30 days in prison and a yr of house confinement for the scheme. He pleaded guilty last yr.

“On the height of the pandemic, before vaccines had been available, this physician sought to revenue from patients’ fears,” U.S. Attorney Randy Grossman said in a information launch. “He abused his place of trust and undermined the integrity of your entire medical profession.”

Staley’s legal professional did not instantly respond to requests for comment late Monday.

How false hope unfold about hydroxychloroquine to deal with covid-19 — and the results that adopted

Hydroxychloroquine is commonly prescribed to individuals with lupus and rheumatoid arthritis and is used to treat malaria. The drug was repeatedly touted by President Donald Trump, beginning within the early days of the pandemic, as a “recreation changer.” Trump’s endorsement prompted demand for the drug to spike, leading to shortages and finally affecting those that needed it for non-covid health problems. Research later discovered that hydroxychloroquine isn't an effective treatment for covid and did not stop folks from turning into sick.

According to prosecutors, federal brokers started trying into Staley after involved prospects alerted the FBI to the advertising and marketing emails from Skinny Seaside Med Spa. The enterprise advertised “world-class magnificence innovations at reasonably priced costs,” courtroom documents present, and provided services together with Botox, fat switch, hair elimination and tattoo removing.

The covid remedy equipment came with a 30-day “concierge medical expertise,” intravenous drips, entry to medical hyperbaric oxygen (at an additional payment), and prescriptions for hydroxychloroquine, azithromycin and anti-anxiety medications, data show.

In late March 2020, an undercover agent responded to one of many emails and inquired concerning the treatment kit, investigators stated. When Staley and the agent spoke on the cellphone soon after, the physician falsely claimed that hydroxychloroquine was a “magic bullet” and an “amazing treatment” that would hold somebody immune from covid for not less than six weeks, in line with court docket information.

“It’s preventive and healing,” Staley mentioned to the spy, courtroom paperwork show. “It’s exhausting to consider, it’s nearly too good to be true. But it surely’s a remarkable scientific phenomenon.”

He added that the virus “actually disappears in hours” after a person takes the drug.

When requested by the agent whether the medication was a “guaranteed” treatment for covid, Staley stated yes however certified that “there’s all the time exceptions” and “there are no ensures in life,” court records present.

In the course of the call, Staley also told the agent how he was sourcing the hydroxychloroquine. He mentioned that he “acquired the final tank of hydroxychloroquine smuggled out of China,” data present, and that he “tricked customs” by labeling the barrel as “candy potato extract.” He added that the powder was sufficient to make 8,000 doses in gelatin capsules.

Staley later supplied the agent prescriptions for generic versions of Viagra and Xanax, a federally managed substance, despite by no means asking him “any medical questions,” prosecutors stated. The agent ordered six kits — enough for himself and five relations — for $4,000, in response to courtroom documents.

A Florida man received millions in coronavirus assist. He used it to buy a Lamborghini, prosecutors say.

Staley was charged in mid-April 2020 and pleaded responsible in July 2021. As part of his plea settlement, Staley also admitted to posing as certainly one of his staff to fill a prescription for hydroxychloroquine to then use it in his kits, prosecutors stated. And he agreed to accusations that he lied to federal agents throughout the investigation.

“Dr. Staley supplied a ‘magic bullet’ — a guaranteed cure for COVID-19 to individuals gripped in fear during a global pandemic,” FBI Special Agent in Charge Suzanne Turner stated in a news release when Staley pleaded responsible. “At this time, Dr. Staley admitted it was all a lie as part of a rip-off to make a quick buck.”

As a part of his sentencing on Friday, Staley was ordered to pay a $10,000 advantageous and to present back the $4,000 the federal agent paid for his household’s kit. He additionally needed to hand over “more than 4,500 tablets of varied pharmaceutical medicine, a number of bags of empty pill capsules, and a guide capsule-filling machine,” prosecutors said.

In keeping with records from the medical board of California, Staley’s license has been quickly suspended by a court order.