San Diego doctor Jennings Staley sentenced in hydroxychloroquine scheme

In March and April of 2020, as the coronavirus unfold and folks isolated of their houses, a physician in San Diego boasted that he had his arms on a “miracle remedy,” in line with prosecutors — hydroxychloroquine.

In mass-marketing emails from his business, Skinny Seaside Med Spa, Jennings Ryan Staley mentioned the drug was included in his coronavirus “therapy kits,” regardless of the treatment turning into increasingly scarce. But Staley had a approach of getting it, he later advised an undercover federal agent. He deliberate to smuggle in a barrel of hydroxychloroquine powder with the assistance of a Chinese supplier, prosecutors stated.

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

“At the height of the pandemic, before vaccines have been obtainable, this physician sought to revenue from sufferers’ fears,” U.S. Attorney Randy Grossman stated in a information launch. “He abused his place of belief and undermined the integrity of the complete medical career.”

Staley’s lawyer did not instantly reply to requests for comment late Monday.

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

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

Based on prosecutors, federal brokers began trying into Staley after concerned clients alerted the FBI to the advertising emails from Skinny Beach Med Spa. The enterprise marketed “world-class beauty innovations at reasonably priced costs,” courtroom documents show, and offered services including Botox, fat transfer, hair elimination and tattoo removing.

The covid treatment kit came with a 30-day “concierge medical expertise,” intravenous drips, access to medical hyperbaric oxygen (at an extra price), and prescriptions for hydroxychloroquine, azithromycin and anti-anxiety drugs, data present.

In late March 2020, an spy responded to one of the emails and inquired about the treatment package, investigators said. When Staley and the agent spoke on the cellphone soon after, the doctor falsely claimed that hydroxychloroquine was a “magic bullet” and an “superb cure” that will preserve someone immune from covid for at the very least six weeks, in line with courtroom records.

“It’s preventive and curative,” Staley mentioned to the spy, courtroom documents present. “It’s arduous to believe, it’s nearly too good to be true. However it’s a outstanding medical phenomenon.”

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

When requested by the agent whether or not the medication was a “assured” remedy for covid, Staley said sure but qualified that “there’s at all times exceptions” and “there aren't any guarantees in life,” court docket information present.

Through the name, Staley also informed the agent how he was sourcing the hydroxychloroquine. He stated that he “received the last tank of hydroxychloroquine smuggled out of China,” information show, and that he “tricked customs” by labeling the barrel as “sweet 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 controlled substance, regardless of never asking him “any medical questions,” prosecutors stated. The agent ordered six kits — enough for himself and five relations — for $4,000, according to court documents.

A Florida man acquired millions in coronavirus support. 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 agreement, Staley additionally admitted to posing as considered one of his workers to fill a prescription for hydroxychloroquine to then use it in his kits, prosecutors mentioned. And he agreed to accusations that he lied to federal brokers during the investigation.

“Dr. Staley provided a ‘magic bullet’ — a assured remedy for COVID-19 to folks gripped in fear throughout a global pandemic,” FBI Special Agent in Cost Suzanne Turner said in a information release when Staley pleaded guilty. “At the moment, Dr. Staley admitted it was all a lie as a part of a scam to make a fast buck.”

As part of his sentencing on Friday, Staley was ordered to pay a $10,000 advantageous and to offer back the $4,000 the federal agent paid for his family’s equipment. He additionally had to hand over “more than 4,500 tablets of various pharmaceutical drugs, multiple baggage of empty tablet capsules, and a guide capsule-filling machine,” prosecutors mentioned.

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