Three Metro Detroit doctors, six others charged in $20M+ opioid distribution conspiracy

DETROIT (WWJ) Three Metro Detroit doctors and six others were charged in a $20+ million conspiracy to illegally distribute highly addictive prescription drugs, according to U.S. Attorney Dawn Ison.

The indictment, unsealed on Friday, alleges Sharlene Dawson or Crawford, 55 of Detroit, owned P&A Aftercare clinic in Southfield— on Greenfield near 8 Mile. Between June 2021 and September 2024; she allegedly hired doctors Charles Wasson (70, Orchard Lake), Maurice Potts (65, Detroit) and Bruce Kaplan (83, Commerce Township) to dole out controlled substance prescriptions to a group of “fake patients” in exchange for cash. The doctors handed out the prescriptions “without medical necessity and outside the usual course of professional medical practice”, a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office Eastern District of Michigan said.

According to the indictment; Lanise Gortman (53, Warren), Aaron Thomas (42, Southfield), Valecia Logan (33, Detroit) and Antoine Arnold (38, Mt. Clemens) recruited the fake patients. The recruiters would fill the prescriptions at local pharmacies and sell the controlled substances on the street. Percocet, Oxycondone and Norco were the main drugs distributed in this conspiracy, the press release said.

Desiree King (41, Sterling Heights) ran the front office at P&A Aftercare. She’s charged with working closely with the recruiters to facilitate the distribution of the drugs, the indictment said.

Although most of the controlled and noncontrolled substances were paid for in cash, pharmacies billed the maintenance medications to healthcare benefit programs. Billings to the Medicare and Medicaid programs for “medically unnecessary prescription drugs and maintenance medications” surpassed $20 million during the three-year conspiracy, the release read.

The FBI, the Department of Health and Human Services and the Office of Inspector General all assisted in the investigation.