Padma Shri Raj Bothra acquitted of all charges in US trial
Darpan News Desk IANS, 02 Jul, 2022 08:57 PM
Rajendra Bothra, an Indian-origin doctor, and three other physicians were acquitted of charges related to federal allegations they operated a Warren-based prescription drug mill, the media reported.
Bothra of Bloomfield Hills the accused mastermind; along with Ganiu Edu of Southfield, Davi Lewis of Detroit and Christopher Russo of Birmingham were found not guilty by a jury, Macomb Daily reported.
The verdicts followed a six-week trial in front of Judge Stephen Murphy in US District Court in Detroit.
Bothra's attorney, Arthur Weiss, said he and his client are "ecstatic" over the verdict but upset that he has been in federal detention for 43 months while awaiting trial. The other defendants were free on personal bonds.
Bothra was awarded the Padma Shri by the Indian government in 1999.
"We're glad the jury looked at the evidence and made the appropriate decision in a relatively short amount of time," Weiss said. "Where does he go to reclaim those 43 months?"
Bothra was released from detention on Wednesday. Over the course of the proceedings, the India native repeatedly attempted to gain freedom while awaiting trial but was denied by the judge.
US attorneys were concerned about Bothra's risk of flight since he often had visited India since moving to the US several decades ago and lied about the extent of his travel, Macomb Daily reported.
Bothra owned and operated The Pain Center, based in Warren and with other locations, including in Eastpointe, and employed the other doctors.
The group collectively was charged with over 50 counts, with each of them facing one count each of conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, mostly the opioid Norco, and conspiracy to commit health care fraud.
The other counts were distribution of controlled substances and health care fraud.
Bothra faced the most counts and Edu faced the second most counts.
Assistant US Attorney Brandy McMillion said the doctors handed out drugs like a "McDonald's drive thru" and compared the operation to an assembly line.
She said the doctors forced patients suffering back pain to undergo radio frequency ablations on their backs in exchange for drugs, and unnecessarily prescribed back braces to patients, Macomb Daily reported.
US attorneys said the defendants illicitly prescribed over 13 million pills and made false claims to illegally collect over $20 million from Medicare, over $17 million from Medicaid and over $15 million from Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, from 2013 to 2018.
A joint venture between a Chinese company and a Halifax research team hoping to execute Canada's first clinical trials of a possible COVID-19 vaccine has been squashed amid conflict between the two nations.
WATCH: Good News - HUGE announcements made by ministry of citizenship and Immigration Canada. Are you a visitor to Canada (as of Aug 24 2020), and got a Job-offer?
U.S. health officials sparked criticism and confusion after posting guidelines on coronavirus testing from the White House task force that run counter to what scientists say is necessary to control the pandemic.
White House trade adviser Peter Navarro is taking some unprovoked swipes at Canada in a new book about U.S. President Donald Trump's unconventional approach to foreign policy.
It's Vice-President Mike Pence's turn to take the stage at the Republican National Convention, where Donald Trump's allies, friends and family members have spent the week putting a positive sheen on the president's first term.
