A jury convicted a physician and former owner of the Virginia Vein Institute in Blacksburg of multiple federal offenses, including illegally distributing controlled substances, healthcare fraud and obstruction of justice, the Department of Justice said Jan. 30.
The jury came to its conclusion after a seven-day trial in the U.S. District Court in Roanoke, Va. Evidence presented to the jury showed that Frank Purpera Jr., MD, wrote illegal prescriptions for Percocet and Adderall for his wife over the course of five years.
Evidence also indicated Dr. Purpera falsified medical records to inflate claim payments from Medicare and Anthem. The payers paid more than $6 million in excessive claims to Dr. Purpera.
When a search warrant was handed to the Virginia Vein Institute in September 2016, Dr. Purpera told his employees to tell federal investigators "I don't recall" if questioned. He allegedly showed an employee a video clip from "The Wolf of Wall Street" in which employees tell federal law enforcement "I don't recall" to reiterate his point.
Dr. Purpera was found guilty of all 60 counts he was charged for.