A scheme involving stolen samples used to fill scripts netted millions of dollars for the rep and a drugstore owner. Luther Manning, 52, the Wyeth rep from Union County, NJ, peddled Lipitor and Effexor to pharmacies at cut-rate prices, and William Stracher, 65, of Vermont, who owns Sussman Drugs in Paterson, NJ, sold the drugs and then laundered his profits by buying prized baseball memorabilia, says Bergen County, NJ, prosecutor John Molinelli.

“These are men who made millions by duping manufacturers - and, ultimately, the consumer,” he tells The Bergen Record.

Authorities have no proof that Stracher and Manning colluded directly, he adds, but the men were arrested separately Tuesday as part of an ongoing probe involving investigators from his office, the FDA and the Department of Health and Human Services. And more arrests are expected.

The prosecutor said Stracher’s scheme required him to periodically rid his shelves of some prescription drugs, including antidepressants and allergy meds. Selling the drugs to other drugstores is a legitimate practice often used by pharmacy proprietors who want to move unsold excess drugs. “He would say to another pharmacy, I’ve got too many pills of ‘X’ and I’ll sell them to you at 95 percent off,” the prosecutor says.

Stracher then restocked the shelves with “not for resale” samples stolen from Wyeth’s storage facility in Hasbrouck Heights, NJ, among other sources, according to Molinelli. The pharmacy owner then laundered the profits from those drugs by obtaining money orders and purchasing an extensive sports-memorabilia collection, which he kept at his home in Peru, Vt., Molinelli says.

“It’s pretty good stuff - a lot of old baseball stuff,” he says.

A Wyeth spokesman didn’t immediately return calls for comment Tuesday. [UPDATE: To be clear, the Wyeth spokesman didn't return calls to The Record, which first reported this story. We are now seeking comment. UPDATE #2: A Wyeth spokesman wrote us at 11 am EST to say he never received call from the paper, but the drugmaker is cooperating with authorities.]

Besides Lipitor, authorities seized Ziploc bags full of Wyeth’s Effexor. It was difficult to determine exactly how much either Stracher or Manning netted, Molinelli says, citing retail prices of $9 per pill for Lipitor and $16 each for cardiac medication Plavix, manufactured by Bristol-Myers Squibb.

Stracher and Manning are charged with four counts each of distribution of illegally diverted prescription drugs. They face five to 10 years in prison if convicted, as well as up to $150,000 in fines. Both were being held Tuesday at the Bergen County Jail – Stracher on $125,000 bail and Manning on $25,000 bail.

Source: The Bergen Record