December 19, 2008
JUDGE ORDERS COLORADO SPRINGS BASED COLLEGE PHARMACY TO FORFEIT $3,500,000
Judgment stems from settlement agreement reached between the old owners of the pharmacy and the government
DENVER – U.S. District Court Judge Marcia S. Krieger this week ordered College Pharmacy, Incorporated, a Colorado Springs corporation, to forfeit $3,500,000, to the United States government, U.S. Attorney Troy A. Eid announced. The judgment was part of a civil settlement agreement reached between the government and the current owners of the pharmacy. The forfeited money represents the ill-gotten proceeds the business made from their criminal conduct – specifically the illegal importation, sale and distribution of hGH, human growth hormone.
College Pharmacy as a corporation, and three individuals who were owners, operators, employees or agents of the business, were indicted by a federal grand jury in Denver on August 8, 2007. Of the three defendants, Thomas Bader, Kevin Henry, and Bradley Blum, only one, Blum, has pled guilty and been sentenced. The other two await trial, which is scheduled for April 2009. Blum was sentenced this week by Judge Krieger to serve 2 years of probation, of which the first 6 months are to be spent in home detention. Blum was also ordered to pay a $10,000 fine.
On August 21, 2008, the U.S. Attorney’s Office filed a verified Complaint for forfeiture. A settlement was later reached between the two parties. Judge Krieger signed the final order and judgment, codifying the settlement, on December 17, 2008. The agreement states that the parties agreed that the defendant, College Pharmacy, will pay $3,500,000 in lieu of the forfeiture of the pharmacy’s property. The agreement reached yesterday addresses issues involving the previous owners of the pharmacy, who illegally imported and sold Chinese hGH. The pharmacy is now under new ownership.
“Happily, crime still doesn’t pay,” said United States Attorney Troy A. Eid.
The criminal case was investigated by the Food and Drug Administration, Office of Criminal Investigations (FDA-OIC), the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
The cases are being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jaime Pena, Gregory Rhodes, James Russell and Tonya Andrews.
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