Charleston, WV: Syrian Doctor Pleads Guilty in Illegal Distribution of Pain Meds Investigation

“A drug dealer in a lab coat is still just a drug dealer!”

(United States Attorney Mike Stuart)

Ho hum! you might be saying, another foreign doctor destroying Americans with drugs! What else is new?

But this case, reported by the US Justice Department on Saturday, caught my attention immediately.

The first thing I did was try to find out if the drug dealer is Syrian and after a little searching I found a reference to his Syrian passport.  

Why was that so interesting you ask?

Well, it’s because it was the Syrian ‘community’ in Charleston that was pushing for West Virginia (specifically Charleston) to become a Syrian refugee resettlement site back toward the end of the Obama Administration.  I even heard a rumor that Syrian doctors were making generous contributions to local Congressmen (maybe other pols too!) to gain their support for refugee resettlement.

First here is the rather unusual press release from the US Justice Department this week:

Charleston Doctor Pleads Guilty to Illegal Distribution of Methadone

Nasher
Muhammed Samer Nasher-Alneam

CHARLESTON, W.Va. – A Charleston doctor who practiced at Neurology & Pain Center, PLLC pled guilty to illegal distribution of controlled substances that were not for legitimate medical purposes, announced United States Attorney Mike Stuart. Muhammed Samer Nasher-Alneam admitted to writing prescriptions in July 2014 for oxycodone and methadone pills that were not within the bounds of professional medical practice or for legitimate medical purposes. Pursuant to his guilty plea, Nasher agreed to permanently surrender both his medical license and DEA registration. He further agreed to never seek reinstatement of a license to practice as a medical doctor in any other state.

Now check out the next paragraph.  Normally these press releases are written in a boring style.  It is rare to see such enthusiasm!  Cut the head of the snake!

“Nasher is now an admitted felon and faces up to ten years – TEN YEARS- in a federal prison. A drug dealer in a lab coat is still just a drug dealer,” said United States Attorney Mike Stuart. “Nasher will never practice medicine again. Ever. Nasher will never write another prescription. Ever. And Nasher will never treat another patient. Ever. We’re cracking down hard across the board – medical professionals, doctors, pharmacists, street dealers and traffickers – in a multi-pronged aggressive approach intended to cut the head off the snake. Medical professionals should take note that if they abuse the prescribing privileges of their profession, and I stress that they are a privilege, my office will prosecute them to the fullest extent of the law and I will seek the maximum sentence in every case.”

Nasher was remanded to the custody of the United States Marshal pending his December 2, 2019 sentencing. Nasher has remained in custody since his arrest on July 27, 2018 – 393 days – as a result of the United States moving to detain him. He faces at least 5 and up to 10 years in prison, as well as a $1 million fine at sentencing. As part of his plea agreement, Nasher agreed to forfeit $149,480.75 in United States Currency and an Acura RDX Sport Utility Vehicle.

More here.

Now here is a news story from WSAZ Charleston from nearly a year ago which tells us a bit more about Nasher and his Syrian roots:

UPDATE: Doctor facing 22 charges in new indictment

The order of detention states that Nasher-Alneam’s mom and five brothers live in Turkey — a place the suspect has visited. It also states Nasher-Alneam has traveled outside of the United States (to United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Mexico and Malaysia) several times for various reasons.

Court documents say Nasher-Alneam delivered his U.S. passport to his attorney, “but there are some questions concerning the location and validity of his Syrian Passport that was not revealed to the probation officer during his initial interview.In addition, the defendant was not forthright and truthful to the probation officer concerning his ownership of various properties and financial assets.”

I’m guessing a legitimate fear of him skipping the country is why he has been in custody for nearly a year.

And, I’ll bet there is a lot more to this story than we are being told!

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3 thoughts on “Charleston, WV: Syrian Doctor Pleads Guilty in Illegal Distribution of Pain Meds Investigation

  1. But will he actually serve time? Or will he be deported? If deported, he’ll be back in business in no time flat. If imprisoned, we taxpayers get to take care of him for the duration of his sentence.

    1. If deported, he probably has already stashed his ill-gotten gains somewhere in the Middle East and it will be waiting for him!

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