What Happened
Stanley David Demorest, who managed Demorest Consultants LLC, a medical practice in Melrose Park, Illinois, and Nicholas Recchia, a physician employed there, agreed from 2015 to 2020 to dispense hydrocodone, oxycodone, fentanyl and other controlled substances to individuals they knew had no legitimate medical need for them. Demorest, who had surrendered his DEA registration in 2015, used Recchia's name and DEA registration number to issue some prescriptions. Both pleaded guilty, and Demorest also pleaded to unlawfully using another person's DEA registration number. On December 14, 2023, a federal judge sentenced Demorest to two years in prison and Recchia to six months.
“Both defendants admitted in plea agreements that they dispensed controlled substances outside the usual course of medical practice and without a legitimate medical purpose.”
Related Guidance
- 15 Red Flags of Drug Diversion — Behavioral and transactional indicators of diversion.
- Investigation Playbook — How to investigate suspected diversion inside an organization.