Nutley Doc Found Guilty of Supplying Oxycodone Ring

A Nutley doctor was found guilty Wednesday of writing illegal prescriptions that put an estimated 70,000 oxycodone pills on the street for resale, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.

Michael Durante, 59, of Montclair, whose internal medicine practice was located in Nutley, faces up to 20 years in prison and $4 million in fines, after a federal jury in New Jersey convicted him of 16 of 17 counts brought against him, one count of conspiracy to distribute oxycodone and 15 counts of unlawful distribution of the drug.

Durante, according to evidence presented in court, regularly sold prescriptions of the pain killer oxycodone between 2009 and March 2011 to a group of people who would resell the drugs on the street for a profit.

Two men who pleaded guilty to the scheme, Andre Domando, 48, of Belleville, and Dennis Abato, 61, of Lakewood, each had a stable of patients who visited Durante requesting prescriptions for large quantities of oxycodone. The drugs were resold through a redistribution network for as much as $1,000 to $1,200 per bottle.

Recordings of Durante from February 2011 presented as evidence during the trial showed he was aware of the scheme.

Durante, referring to prescriptions he provided to Domando over the previous week, was heard in the recordings saying “[s]o two last week, four this week—you should have $6,000 in your pocket.” He later said, “I know what people do with these things. You gotta have at least 12, 15 thousand dollars a month of income here.”

Additional evidence showed Durante on video accepting $300 from Domando in exchange for prescriptions as well as $100 for an extra prescription he sold to an undercover agent.

As part of the scheme, the doctor falsified medical records, omitting progress notes and lying about writing new prescriptions for ones he claimed had been lost. One note indicated a dog may have eaten a patient’s pills.

A sentencing date has not yet been set. A hearing has been scheduled for Thursday to discuss the forfeiture of nearly $300,000 in cash found in Durante’s Montclair home.

The jury returned the verdict on the second day of deliberations after a nearly three-month trial before U.S. District Judge Stanley R. Chesler in Newark federal court.

The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Anthony Mahajan and Osmar J. Benvenuto of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Criminal Division in Newark. Cathy Fleming and Harold Ruvoldt of New York represent Durante.