Manhattan Doctor Pleads Guilty To The Illegal Distribution Of Oxycodone And Fentanyl Resulting In Patient’s Overdose
summary
Dr. Gordon Freedman pled guilty to illegally distributing massive quantities of oxycodone and fentanyl to a patient for no legitimate medical purpose, resulting in the patient’s fatal 2017 overdose, and was separately convicted of accepting kickbacks from a pharmaceutical company to promote unnecessary prescriptions.
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Dr. Gordon Freedman pled guilty to distributing oxycodone and fentanyl without legitimate medical purpose, leading to the 2017 fatal overdose of Patient-1, to whom he prescribed over 85,000 oxycodone pills in 2013 alone—totaling 2.4 million mg—and 150 doses of fentanyl shortly before the death. He was also convicted in a separate case for conspiracy to violate the Anti-Kickback Statute and honest-services wire fraud, having accepted hundreds of thousands of dollars in kickbacks from a pharmaceutical company to promote unnecessary fentanyl prescriptions. Freedman faces a maximum 20-year sentence for the distribution charge, with sentencing scheduled for March 18, 2020, and an additional sentencing on March 19, 2020, for the kickback and fraud convictions.
narrative
Dr. Gordon Freedman, a Manhattan pain specialist and Associate Clinical Professor, pled guilty to distributing excessive quantities of oxycodone and fentanyl to Patient-1 for no legitimate medical purpose, directly contributing to the patient’s fatal fentanyl overdose on May 4, 2017. Between 2013 and May 2017, he prescribed Patient-1 approximately 85,427 oxycodone pills in 2013 alone—averaging 234 pills per day—and on April 13, 2017, issued prescriptions for 150 fentanyl doses and 950 oxycodone pills, which were ingested prior to the overdose. Freedman was also previously convicted on December 5, 2019, in a separate case for conspiracy to violate the Anti-Kickback Statute and conspiracy to commit honest-services wire fraud, having accepted hundreds of thousands of dollars in kickbacks from a pharmaceutical company to promote medically unnecessary fentanyl prescriptions. He operated his private pain-management practice on Manhattan’s Upper East Side while holding a clinical position at a major hospital, exploiting both roles to enable his fraudulent prescribing. The case was investigated by the FBI and NYPD and prosecuted by the Southern District of New York’s Complex Frauds and Cybercrime Unit. Freedman faces a maximum 20-year prison term for the distribution charge, with sentencing set for March 18, 2020, and an additional sentencing on March 19, 2020, for the kickback and fraud convictions, underscoring a pattern of prioritizing profit over patient safety.
Classified health-care-fraud(confidence 100%). No EDGAR filing fingerprint (criminal/DOJ-side scheme). detection rule →
Statutes
Parties
United States of AmericaGordon Freedman
Keywords
freedmanoxycodone fentanyloxycodonefentanylpatientgordon freedmannewmanhattanoverdoselinkmanhattan doctordoctor pleadspleads illegalillegal distributiondistribution oxycodone
Extracted insights
Entities 4
- scheme_term conspiracy to commit honest-services wire fraud
- scheme_term conspiracy to violate the anti-kickback statute
- person gordon freedman
- scheme_term violation of the anti-kickback statute
Triples 14
- Gordon Freedman Plead Guilty To The Illegal Distribution Of Oxycodone And Fentanyl Resulting In Patient’s Overdose
- Gordon Freedman Plead Guilty To One Count Of Distributing Oxycodone And Fentanyl To A Patient For No Legitimate Medical Purpose
- Gordon Freedman Prescribe Numerous Controlled Substances To A Particular Patient
- Gordon Freedman Prescribe Approximately 85,427 Oxycodone Pills To Patient-1 In 2013
- Gordon Freedman Prescribe Approximately 150 Doses Of A Drug Containing Fentanyl To Patient-1 On Or About April 13, 2017
- Gordon Freedman Prescribe Approximately 950 Oxycodone Pills Containing Approximately 30 Mg Of Oxycodone Per Pill To Patient-1 On Or About April 13, 2017
- Patient-1 Die Of A Fentanyl Overdose After Ingesting A Quantity Of The Drug Prescribed By Gordon Freedman On Or About April 13, 2017
- Gordon Freedman Be Convicted Of Accepting Hundreds Of Thousands Of Dollars From A Pharmaceutical Company To Push Medically Unneeded Fentanyl
- Gordon Freedman Be Convicted Of Conspiracy To Violate The Anti-Kickback Statute
- Gordon Freedman Be Convicted Of Violation Of The Anti-Kickback Statute
- Gordon Freedman Be Convicted Of Conspiracy To Commit Honest-Services Wire Fraud
- Gordon Freedman Be Scheduled To Be Sentenced By Judge Nathan On March 18, 2020
- Gordon Freedman Be Scheduled To Appear For Sentencing Before U.S. District Judge Kimba M. Wood On March 19, 2020
- Mr. Berman Praise The Federal Bureau Of Investigation And The New York City Police Department For Their Investigative Efforts And Ongoing Support And Assistance With The Case
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Press Release Manhattan Doctor Pleads Guilty To The Illegal Distribution Of Oxycodone And Fentanyl Resulting In Patient’s Overdose Wednesday, December 18, 2019 Share FacebookLinks to other government and non-government sites will typically appear with the “external link” icon to indicate that you are leaving the Department of Justice website when you click the link. XLinks to other government and non-government sites will typically appear with the “external link” icon to indicate that you are leaving the Department of Justice website when you click the link. LinkedInLinks to other government and non-government sites will typically appear with the “external link” icon to indicate that you are leaving the Department of Justice website when you click the link. Email For Immediate Release U.S. Attorney's Office, Southern District of New York Geoffrey S. Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that GORDON FREEDMAN, a doctor who practiced in New York, New York, pled guilty today to one count of distributing oxycodone and fentanyl to a patient for no legitimate medical purpose, which resulted in the overdose of the patient. FREEDMAN pled guilty before U.S. District Judge Alison J. Nathan. Manhattan U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman said: “Less than two weeks ago, Gordon Freedman was convicted of accepting hundreds of thousands of dollars from a pharmaceutical company to push medically unneeded fentanyl. Today, in a separate but hardly unrelated case, he admitted to dispensing massive quantities of oxycodone and fentanyl to a patient who died of a fentanyl overdose in 2017. It seems clear Gordon Freedman was more concerned with his own wealth than his patients’ health.” According to the allegations contained in the Indictment against FREEDMAN and filings in related proceedings: From in or about 2013 through in or about May 2017, FREEDMAN, who worked at and owned a private pain-management office on the Upper East Side of Manhattan and was an Associate Clinical Professor at a large hospital in Manhattan, prescribed numerous controlled substances to a particular patient (“Patient-1”), including enormous quantities of oxycodone and fentanyl. For example, in 2013 alone, FREEDMAN prescribed Patient-1 approximately 85,427 oxycodone pills – an average of approximately 234 oxycodone pills per day – containing a total of approximately 2,422,435 mg of oxycodone. On or about April 13, 2017, FREEDMAN gave Patient-1 prescriptions for approximately 150 doses of a drug containing fentanyl, and for approximately 950 oxycodone pills containing approximately 30 mg of oxycodone per pill. On or about May 4, 2017, Patient-1 died of a fentanyl overdose after ingesting a quantity of the drug prescribed by FREEDMAN on or about April 13, 2017. * * * FREEDMAN, 59, of Mount Kisco, New York, pled guilty to one count of distributing oxycodone and fentanyl, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. The maximum potential sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentence for the defendant will be determined by the judge. FREEDMAN is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Nathan on March 18, 2020. On December 5, 2019, FREEDMAN was convicted in a separate case, U.S. v. Gordon Freedman et al., 18 Cr. 217 (KMW), of charges of conspiracy to violate the Anti-Kickback Statute, violation of the Anti-Kickback Statute, and conspiracy to commit honest-services wire fraud. In connection with that case, FREEDMAN is scheduled to appear for sentencing before U.S. District Judge Kimba M. Wood on March 19, 2020. Mr. Berman praised the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the New York City Police Department for their investigative efforts and ongoing support and assistance with the case. The case is being prosecuted by the Office’s Complex Frauds and Cybercrime Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Noah Solowiejczyk, David Abramowicz, and Katherine Reilly are in charge of the prosecution. Contact Jim Margolin, Nicholas Biase (212) 637-2600 Updated December 18, 2019 Topics Opioids Prescription Drugs Component USAO - New York, Southern Press Release Number: 19-440
OCR text (4,179c · plain-text · 99% conf)
Press Release Manhattan Doctor Pleads Guilty To The Illegal Distribution Of Oxycodone And Fentanyl Resulting In Patient’s Overdose Wednesday, December 18, 2019 Share FacebookLinks to other government and non-government sites will typically appear with the “external link” icon to indicate that you are leaving the Department of Justice website when you click the link. XLinks to other government and non-government sites will typically appear with the “external link” icon to indicate that you are leaving the Department of Justice website when you click the link. LinkedInLinks to other government and non-government sites will typically appear with the “external link” icon to indicate that you are leaving the Department of Justice website when you click the link. Email For Immediate Release U.S. Attorney's Office, Southern District of New York Geoffrey S. Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that GORDON FREEDMAN, a doctor who practiced in New York, New York, pled guilty today to one count of distributing oxycodone and fentanyl to a patient for no legitimate medical purpose, which resulted in the overdose of the patient. FREEDMAN pled guilty before U.S. District Judge Alison J. Nathan. Manhattan U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman said: “Less than two weeks ago, Gordon Freedman was convicted of accepting hundreds of thousands of dollars from a pharmaceutical company to push medically unneeded fentanyl. Today, in a separate but hardly unrelated case, he admitted to dispensing massive quantities of oxycodone and fentanyl to a patient who died of a fentanyl overdose in 2017. It seems clear Gordon Freedman was more concerned with his own wealth than his patients’ health.” According to the allegations contained in the Indictment against FREEDMAN and filings in related proceedings: From in or about 2013 through in or about May 2017, FREEDMAN, who worked at and owned a private pain-management office on the Upper East Side of Manhattan and was an Associate Clinical Professor at a large hospital in Manhattan, prescribed numerous controlled substances to a particular patient (“Patient-1”), including enormous quantities of oxycodone and fentanyl. For example, in 2013 alone, FREEDMAN prescribed Patient-1 approximately 85,427 oxycodone pills – an average of approximately 234 oxycodone pills per day – containing a total of approximately 2,422,435 mg of oxycodone. On or about April 13, 2017, FREEDMAN gave Patient-1 prescriptions for approximately 150 doses of a drug containing fentanyl, and for approximately 950 oxycodone pills containing approximately 30 mg of oxycodone per pill. On or about May 4, 2017, Patient-1 died of a fentanyl overdose after ingesting a quantity of the drug prescribed by FREEDMAN on or about April 13, 2017. * * * FREEDMAN, 59, of Mount Kisco, New York, pled guilty to one count of distributing oxycodone and fentanyl, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. The maximum potential sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentence for the defendant will be determined by the judge. FREEDMAN is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Nathan on March 18, 2020. On December 5, 2019, FREEDMAN was convicted in a separate case, U.S. v. Gordon Freedman et al., 18 Cr. 217 (KMW), of charges of conspiracy to violate the Anti-Kickback Statute, violation of the Anti-Kickback Statute, and conspiracy to commit honest-services wire fraud. In connection with that case, FREEDMAN is scheduled to appear for sentencing before U.S. District Judge Kimba M. Wood on March 19, 2020. Mr. Berman praised the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the New York City Police Department for their investigative efforts and ongoing support and assistance with the case. The case is being prosecuted by the Office’s Complex Frauds and Cybercrime Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Noah Solowiejczyk, David Abramowicz, and Katherine Reilly are in charge of the prosecution. Contact Jim Margolin, Nicholas Biase (212) 637-2600 Updated December 18, 2019 Topics Opioids Prescription Drugs Component USAO - New York, Southern Press Release Number: 19-440