Charge: KY man used his state-government email in illegal Viagra distribution scheme
A Franklin County man used his Kentucky government email account to further a scheme to import and sell mislabeled generic Viagra, a federal grand jury has charged.
The grand jury indicted Howard Stanley Head Jr., Thursday on charges of conspiracy, smuggling mislabeled prescription drugs into the U.S. and receiving misbranded drugs.
Head was employed at the Kentucky Finance & Administration Cabinet at the time, the indictment said.
Head allegedly ordered wholesale shipments of pills containing the erectile-dysfunction drugs Sildenafil and Tadalafil, sold under the brand names Viagra and Cialis, from suppliers in India, Singapore and elsewhere to be shipped to his home in Franklin County or the home of a friend.
The indictment said Head ordered hundreds of pills at a time, picking up a package in October 2019 with 1,000 doses of each of the drugs, for instance.
Suppliers labeled the shipments as “supplements” or something else to hide the true contents, the indictment charged.
Head allegedly resold the pills in smaller quantities even though he was not licensed to dispense prescription drugs.
He used the persona of “Dr. Head” and the business name “Dr. Head’s Meds,” and referred to the pills in emails to customers with code names, such as “blue magic” or “energy vitamins,” according to the indictment.
The indictment said Head used his state email to deal with customers at times.
When a customer asked him in October 2017 if the “drugstore” was still open, for example, Head responded from his state account, “Of course . . . never run dry,” the indictment said.
Head allegedly took part in the scheme from at least July 2015 through October 2019. He no longer works at the cabinet.
The most serious charge in the indictment has a top sentence of 20 years.
This story was originally published November 6, 2020 at 1:47 PM.
