Ndubuisi Joseph Okafor, MD, a physician based in Washington, D.C., has been arrested and charged with 16 counts of illegal distribution of opioids.
Dr. Okafor allegedly distributed oxycodone to individuals without legitimate medical reason, according to an April 12 news release from the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.
"Okafor allegedly performed only cursory evaluations of individuals, and further solicited and received cash inside the examination rooms of his clinic in exchange for opioid prescriptions," the release states.
If convicted, he could face a sentence of up to 20 years in prison on each of the 16 counts — which at most could total to 320 years.
The new charges he now faces led to the Drug Enforcement Agency serving the physician an immediate suspension order for his DEA registration "because it was determined that he posed an imminent danger to public health and safety due to the volume of unlawful distribution of opioids," according to the release.
The legal challenges are not the first the physician has faced. In 2007, Dr. Okafor was indicted for failing to report more than $1 million in income and evading $360,000 in taxes. He pleaded guilty to the charges in 2008 and was incarcerated for more than five years, according to court documents. As part of the guilty plea, Dr. Okafor was also ordered to pay $769,192 in restitution to tax authorities and $33,060 to Medicare. He later appealed, requesting to withdraw his guilty plea, citing "ineffective assistance of counsel," but the motion was denied and his conviction remained.
After serving his sentence, Dr. Okafor applied to reinstate his medical license, and the D.C. Board of Medicine did so in May 2013 with certain conditions. However, documents indicate that he faced further complications doing so with the Maryland State Board of Physicians.