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Attorney General Paxton Announces Takedown of Houston Pharmaceutical Opioid Distribution Network
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AUSTIN ? Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has announced a successful raid against an illegal pharmaceutical-grade drug distribution ring in Houston after an investigation by the Office of the Attorney General?s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit.
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Six individuals were arrested during the raid, including Quineshia Evangeline Hollins, 33, Kerry Lewis Walker, 36, Gerald Dewayne Williams, 65, Trey Demon Neal, 34, James Glen Turk, 21, and Uzoanuuli Uzoaku WJ Payne, 52. They face assorted charges related to the conspiracy to distribute controlled substances including oxycodone and hydrocodone.
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Hollins, owner of the First Choice Rx 245 pharmacy, a Medicaid provider, fraudulently ordered controlled substances and diverted them to co-conspirators for street-level sales through the ?Green Houses,? an illegal stash house operation in the Fifth Ward. During the raid, law enforcement seized firearms, several of which were stolen, a significant amount of cash, thousands of opioid pills, and other controlled substances. If convicted, individuals involved face up to 20 years in prison and a fine of $1,000,000.
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The investigation was conducted by Sgt. Ryan Moreland and Capt. Alex Chancia of Attorney General Paxton?s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, in partnership with the DEA and the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces, with assistance from the FBI, IRS Criminal Investigations, the U.S. Marshal?s Service, and Houston Police Department. The U.S. Attorney?s Office for the Southern District of Texas is prosecuting the case.
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The Medicaid Fraud Control Unit receives 75 percent of its funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under a grant award totaling $20,944,200 for fiscal year 2023. The remaining 25 percent, totaling $6,981,395, is funded by the State of Texas. For every dollar of state funding, the OAG?s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit has recovered more than 49 dollars for taxpayers over the last three years.
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