San Diego physician Jennings Staley sentenced in hydroxychloroquine scheme

In March and April of 2020, because the coronavirus unfold and folks isolated in their properties, a doctor in San Diego boasted that he had his arms on a “miracle treatment,” in keeping with prosecutors — hydroxychloroquine.

In mass-marketing emails from his enterprise, Skinny Seashore Med Spa, Jennings Ryan Staley stated the drug was included in his coronavirus “remedy kits,” despite the medicine turning into increasingly scarce. However Staley had a way of getting it, he later instructed an undercover federal agent. He planned to smuggle in a barrel of hydroxychloroquine powder with the assistance of a Chinese provider, prosecutors mentioned.

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

“At the top of the pandemic, before vaccines have been available, this doctor sought to profit from patients’ fears,” U.S. Attorney Randy Grossman mentioned in a information launch. “He abused his place of belief and undermined the integrity of your entire medical occupation.”

Staley’s legal professional didn't immediately respond to requests for comment late Monday.

How false hope unfold about hydroxychloroquine to treat covid-19 — and the implications that adopted

Hydroxychloroquine is usually prescribed to individuals with lupus and rheumatoid arthritis and is used to deal with malaria. The drug was repeatedly touted by President Donald Trump, starting in the early days of the pandemic, as a “sport changer.” Trump’s endorsement brought on demand for the drug to spike, resulting in shortages and ultimately affecting those that needed it for non-covid well being issues. Studies later discovered that hydroxychloroquine just isn't an effective treatment for covid and didn't prevent individuals from turning into sick.

In keeping with prosecutors, federal agents started looking into Staley after concerned clients alerted the FBI to the advertising emails from Skinny Beach Med Spa. The enterprise marketed “world-class magnificence improvements at inexpensive costs,” court docket paperwork show, and supplied companies together with Botox, fat switch, hair removing and tattoo elimination.

The covid treatment package came with a 30-day “concierge medical experience,” intravenous drips, entry to medical hyperbaric oxygen (at an additional fee), and prescriptions for hydroxychloroquine, azithromycin and anti-anxiety medicines, records present.

In late March 2020, an spy responded to one of many emails and inquired in regards to the treatment kit, investigators stated. When Staley and the agent spoke on the cellphone quickly after, the doctor falsely claimed that hydroxychloroquine was a “magic bullet” and an “amazing treatment” that might keep somebody immune from covid for at least six weeks, in keeping with court docket information.

“It’s preventive and curative,” Staley mentioned to the spy, court documents show. “It’s hard to imagine, it’s nearly too good to be true. But it’s a outstanding medical phenomenon.”

He added that the virus “actually disappears in hours” after an individual takes the drug.

When asked by the agent whether or not the treatment was a “guaranteed” treatment for covid, Staley stated sure but certified that “there’s always exceptions” and “there are no ensures in life,” court docket information present.

During the call, Staley additionally instructed the agent how he was sourcing the hydroxychloroquine. He said that he “acquired the last tank of hydroxychloroquine smuggled out of China,” records present, and that he “tricked customs” by labeling the barrel as “candy potato extract.” He added that the powder was enough to make 8,000 doses in gelatin capsules.

Staley later supplied the agent prescriptions for generic variations of Viagra and Xanax, a federally managed substance, despite never asking him “any medical questions,” prosecutors said. The agent ordered six kits — sufficient for himself and five family members — for $4,000, according to courtroom paperwork.

A Florida man obtained hundreds of thousands in coronavirus aid. He used it to buy a Lamborghini, prosecutors say.

Staley was charged in mid-April 2020 and pleaded guilty in July 2021. As a part of his plea agreement, Staley also admitted to posing as one of his employees 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 during the investigation.

“Dr. Staley supplied a ‘magic bullet’ — a assured cure for COVID-19 to individuals gripped in fear during a world pandemic,” FBI Special Agent in Cost Suzanne Turner stated in a news launch when Staley pleaded guilty. “Today, Dr. Staley admitted it was all a lie as part of a rip-off to make a fast buck.”

As part of his sentencing on Friday, Staley was ordered to pay a $10,000 advantageous and to provide back the $4,000 the federal agent paid for his household’s equipment. He additionally had to hand over “greater than 4,500 tablets of varied pharmaceutical medicine, multiple bags of empty tablet capsules, and a guide capsule-filling machine,” prosecutors stated.

Based on information from the medical board of California, Staley’s license has been temporarily suspended by a court order.