Doctor who ran suburban weight-loss clinics sentenced to 2 years
A doctor who ran weight-loss clinics in Orland Park and Tinley Park was sentenced to two years in prison Thursday for selling millions of prescription diet pills without examining or monitoring his patients, according to a statement released by the U.S. Attorney's Office in Chicago.
Rakesh Anand, 57, and his wife, Meena, 53, owned Doctors Weight Loss Clinics in Orland Park, Tinley Park and Merrillville, Ind.
Between 2002 and 2010, patients at the clinic could receive pills containing the appetite suppressants phentermine and phendimetrazine upon request. Anand didn't check their medical records, perform health examinations or provide any subsequent monitoring when selling them the powerful drugs, according to prosecutors.
In their investigation, federal officials found nearly $2 million in income the Anands had hidden from the Internal Revenue Service.
Anand pleaded guilty to tax evasion and conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance in the Chicago federal court in January. His wife pleaded guilty to a single count of tax evasion.
On Thursday, U.S. District Judge Joseph Van Bokkelen fined Anand $750,000 and ordered him to begin serving his two-year sentence Aug. 30. He fined his wife $100,000 and sentenced her to 30 days in prison starting Sept. 3.
"We felt like these were very just sentences," said Kevin Milner, the Anands' attorney. The charges against them carried maximum sentences of 4 1/2 years for Rakesh Anand and 3 years for Meena.
The couple previously agreed to pay $745,872 to the IRS for taxes they owed on nearly $2 million in unreported income between 2005 and 2008.
They also agreed to forfeit an additional $4.45 million that the government froze or seized during its investigation, including more than $700,000 in cash that officials found in their Tinley Park home.
Anand admitted in court to selling 1 million phendimetrazine pills and 3 million phentermine pills from 2002 to 2010 with help from another doctor, Dinesh Saraiya.
At $65 for a 30-day supply, the pills made the Anands more than $5 million over the eight-year period, according to court records.
Anand and Saraiya sold pills to undercover agents throughout the federal investigation while failing to follow the appropriate medical protocols.
In 2007, both doctors sold pills to a thin undercover federal agent at the Orland Park clinic. According to the plea agreement, Anand told the agent that she didn't need to lose weight, but sold her a two-month supply anyway.
Milner said Anand voluntarily surrendered his medical licenses in Illinois and Indiana in addition to his federal license to distribute drugs. He said the doctor could attempt to reclaim them after his prison term ends.
The U.S. Attorney's Office said Saraiya cooperated in the case and pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute controlled substances. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for July 30.
mholtz@tribune.com
Twitter: @michael_holtz
Rakesh Anand, 57, and his wife, Meena, 53, owned Doctors Weight Loss Clinics in Orland Park, Tinley Park and Merrillville, Ind.
Between 2002 and 2010, patients at the clinic could receive pills containing the appetite suppressants phentermine and phendimetrazine upon request. Anand didn't check their medical records, perform health examinations or provide any subsequent monitoring when selling them the powerful drugs, according to prosecutors.
Anand pleaded guilty to tax evasion and conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance in the Chicago federal court in January. His wife pleaded guilty to a single count of tax evasion.
On Thursday, U.S. District Judge Joseph Van Bokkelen fined Anand $750,000 and ordered him to begin serving his two-year sentence Aug. 30. He fined his wife $100,000 and sentenced her to 30 days in prison starting Sept. 3.
"We felt like these were very just sentences," said Kevin Milner, the Anands' attorney. The charges against them carried maximum sentences of 4 1/2 years for Rakesh Anand and 3 years for Meena.
The couple previously agreed to pay $745,872 to the IRS for taxes they owed on nearly $2 million in unreported income between 2005 and 2008.
They also agreed to forfeit an additional $4.45 million that the government froze or seized during its investigation, including more than $700,000 in cash that officials found in their Tinley Park home.
Anand admitted in court to selling 1 million phendimetrazine pills and 3 million phentermine pills from 2002 to 2010 with help from another doctor, Dinesh Saraiya.
At $65 for a 30-day supply, the pills made the Anands more than $5 million over the eight-year period, according to court records.
Anand and Saraiya sold pills to undercover agents throughout the federal investigation while failing to follow the appropriate medical protocols.
In 2007, both doctors sold pills to a thin undercover federal agent at the Orland Park clinic. According to the plea agreement, Anand told the agent that she didn't need to lose weight, but sold her a two-month supply anyway.
Milner said Anand voluntarily surrendered his medical licenses in Illinois and Indiana in addition to his federal license to distribute drugs. He said the doctor could attempt to reclaim them after his prison term ends.
The U.S. Attorney's Office said Saraiya cooperated in the case and pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute controlled substances. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for July 30.
mholtz@tribune.com
Twitter: @michael_holtz
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