Madison Pharmacist, Town Councilman Guilty In Oxy Prescription Scheme

BY DAN HUBBARD

A Passaic County pharmacist was found guilty Thursday of third-degree conspiracy to distribute Oxycodeone.

Srinivasa Raju, 44, of Clifton, ran Bottle Hill Pharmacy in Madison and conspired with Vincent A. Esposito, 58, to illegally distribute the highly-addictive painkiller to people Esposito wrote prescriptions for or others he did not even treat or examine, Acting Attorney General Robert Lougy said in a press release.

A jury convicted Raju after a three-week trial before Superior Court Judge Salem Vincent Ahto in Morristown.

Raju was indicted in 2013 by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and the New Jersey Division of Criminal Justice. Third-degree crimes carry a sentence of three to five years in state prison and up to a $15,000 fine. Sentencing is scheduled for July 7.

Esposito, a former Madison councilman, pleaded guilty in December 2013 to second-degree conspiracy to distribute Oxycodone. He surrendered his medical license and is awaiting sentencing, Lougy said.

PHOTO: Srinivasa Raju, 44, left, and Vincent A. Esposito, 58 — Courtesy of Attorney General's Office