San Diego doctor Jennings Staley sentenced in hydroxychloroquine scheme

In March and April of 2020, because the coronavirus spread and folks isolated in their properties, a health care provider in San Diego boasted that he had his arms on a “miracle cure,” in line with prosecutors — hydroxychloroquine.

In mass-marketing emails from his enterprise, Skinny Beach Med Spa, Jennings Ryan Staley stated the drug was included in his coronavirus “treatment kits,” regardless of the medication turning into more and more scarce. But Staley had a method of getting it, he later advised an undercover federal agent. He planned to smuggle in a barrel of hydroxychloroquine powder with the help of a Chinese provider, prosecutors stated.

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

“On the peak of the pandemic, before vaccines have been available, this physician sought to revenue from patients’ fears,” U.S. Lawyer Randy Grossman mentioned in a information release. “He abused his place of trust and undermined the integrity of all the medical career.”

Staley’s lawyer didn't instantly reply to requests for comment late Monday.

How false hope spread about hydroxychloroquine to deal with covid-19 — and the consequences that adopted

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, beginning within the early days of the pandemic, as a “recreation changer.” Trump’s endorsement prompted demand for the drug to spike, leading to shortages and ultimately affecting those that wanted it for non-covid health problems. Studies later found that hydroxychloroquine just isn't an effective treatment for covid and did not forestall individuals from becoming sick.

According to prosecutors, federal agents began looking into Staley after involved customers alerted the FBI to the advertising emails from Skinny Seaside Med Spa. The enterprise advertised “world-class magnificence improvements at inexpensive prices,” courtroom documents show, and provided companies including Botox, fats transfer, hair removal and tattoo removal.

The covid therapy kit got here with a 30-day “concierge medical experience,” intravenous drips, entry to medical hyperbaric oxygen (at an additional fee), and prescriptions for hydroxychloroquine, azithromycin and anti-anxiety drugs, records show.

In late March 2020, an spy responded to one of the emails and inquired in regards to the remedy kit, investigators mentioned. When Staley and the agent spoke on the cellphone soon after, the physician falsely claimed that hydroxychloroquine was a “magic bullet” and an “superb treatment” that would keep somebody immune from covid for at the least six weeks, based on court docket data.

“It’s preventive and healing,” Staley mentioned to the secret agent, court docket documents present. “It’s exhausting to imagine, it’s virtually too good to be true. However it’s a outstanding scientific phenomenon.”

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

When requested by the agent whether or not the treatment was a “guaranteed” treatment for covid, Staley mentioned sure but certified that “there’s always exceptions” and “there aren't any guarantees in life,” courtroom information present.

During the call, Staley additionally advised the agent how he was sourcing the hydroxychloroquine. He stated that he “received the final tank of hydroxychloroquine smuggled out of China,” data show, and that he “tricked customs” by labeling the barrel as “candy potato extract.” He added that the powder was sufficient to make 8,000 doses in gelatin capsules.

Staley later offered the agent prescriptions for generic versions of Viagra and Xanax, a federally controlled substance, regardless of never asking him “any medical questions,” prosecutors said. The agent ordered six kits — sufficient for himself and 5 relations — for $4,000, in accordance with courtroom paperwork.

A Florida man obtained millions in coronavirus help. He used it to buy a Lamborghini, prosecutors say.

Staley was charged in mid-April 2020 and pleaded responsible in July 2021. As a part of his plea agreement, Staley also admitted to posing as one in all his employees to fill a prescription for hydroxychloroquine to then use it in his kits, prosecutors stated. And he agreed to accusations that he lied to federal brokers during the investigation.

“Dr. Staley supplied a ‘magic bullet’ — a guaranteed treatment for COVID-19 to folks gripped in worry throughout a global pandemic,” FBI Particular Agent in Charge Suzanne Turner stated in a information launch when Staley pleaded responsible. “As we speak, Dr. Staley admitted it was all a lie as a part of a rip-off to make a quick buck.”

As a part of his sentencing on Friday, Staley was ordered to pay a $10,000 nice and to provide back the $4,000 the federal agent paid for his household’s equipment. He also had to hand over “greater than 4,500 tablets of assorted pharmaceutical medicine, multiple baggage of empty tablet capsules, and a manual capsule-filling machine,” prosecutors mentioned.

In response to data from the medical board of California, Staley’s license has been quickly suspended by a courtroom order.