A Texas pharmaceutical marketer was sentenced to two years and five months in prison and ordered to pay over $59 million in restitution for defrauding the federal government, receiving illegal kickbacks for prescription referrals, and money laundering, officials stated.
Quintan Cockerell, 43, of Palos Verdes Estates, California, conspired with others to market expensive compounded medications that were not medically necessary. They used preloaded prescription pads with high-billing formulations for doctors to easily select.
The compounding pharmacy receiving the prescriptions implemented “standing orders” to swap out ingredients to maximize insurance reimbursements.
Cockerell and his co-conspirators enticed doctors to write prescriptions by offering “investment opportunities” and lavish trips to destinations like Las Vegas, Mexico, and the Grand Caymans.
The pharmacy paid Cockerell’s then-wife as a sham employee to hide the illegal kickbacks. She did not work there, but Cockerell used her email and received checks in her name, which he then spent.
In October 2023, a federal jury in the Northern District of Texas convicted Cockerell of conspiracy to defraud the federal government, receiving kickbacks and money laundering.