Charlotte Man Is Sentenced For Prescription Fraud And Pill Distribution

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – U.S. District Judge Kenneth D. Bell sentenced Savonte Watkins, 46, of Charlotte, to 42 months in prison on drug charges yesterday, announced Dena J. King, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina.  Judge Bell also ordered Watkins to serve three years under court supervision after he is released from prison.

According to filed court documents and today’s sentencing hearing, in the spring of 2020, Watkins was involved in a scheme to get fraudulent prescriptions for oxycodone filled at local pharmacies in order to illegally distribute the pills. Court documents show that Watkins was responsible for at least 20 fraudulent prescriptions for approximately 1,200 pills of oxycodone.  According to filed documents and court proceedings, Watkins recruited others, often suffering from opioid addiction, to get the prescriptions filled and would pay them with a portion of the filled prescription. 

On May 31, 2023, Watkins pleaded guilty to conspiracy to obtain controlled substances by fraud and possession with intent to distribute oxycodone.

Watkins is currently released on bond. Upon designation of a federal facility, he will report to the federal Bureau of Prisons for his term of imprisonment.

In making today’s announcement, U.S. Attorney King commended the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Tactical Diversion Squad, the Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Department, and the Mooresville Police Department for their investigation of this case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Nick J. Miller of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte prosecuted the case.