State troopers announced today that a 65-year-old Ligonier man employed as a pharmacist at Wal-Mart locations in three counties now faces charges of filing false prescriptions and acquiring drugs illegally.
State Police say that Richard Wisz was behind fraudulent prescription-writing activity between March 22nd of 2014 and December 13th of 2017. During that time, troopers say that Wisz fraudulently obtained over 50 prescriptions including Zolpidem , Alprazolam and Lorazepam. Trooper Cliff Greenfield said that an alert Wal-Mart Pharmacy Technician saw him write an illegal prescription and notified police. That call lead to a lengthy investigation that led to charges filed related to his time at the Wal-Mart pharmacies in Blairsville, Delmont, Latrobe and Somerset, where he would write prescriptions for drugs in his name and in the name of his wife and son, without any provider or physician permission. The drugs he acquired would be for his own personal use. He also billed four insurance companies for the fraudulent prescriptions.
The charges from all three counties were combined into one case that will be prosecuted in Indiana County. District Attorney Pat Dougherty thanked his counterparts in Westmoreland and Somerset County for allowing him to do this, and said it was not an uncommon procedure.
Wisz faces 24 felony counts of illegal prescription administration and dispensing, 60 felony counts of Insurance Faud, 61 counts of felony forgery, and 60 counts each of misdemeanor prohibited acts involving a controlled substance and theft by deception. Wisz was arraigned on Friday, with bail set at $25,000 unsecured. A preliminary hearing is set for September 19th.
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