Dr. Alexander V. Otellin, a former Charleston physician, has been sentenced to three years in prison for unlawfully distributing oxycodone. This will be followed by three years of supervised release. The sentencing took place in Charleston, West Virginia.
Court documents revealed that on July 27, 2017, Otellin distributed oxycodone to a patient at his psychiatry practice in South Charleston without legitimate medical purpose or proper authority. Despite being a psychiatrist, he admitted to treating the patient for pain management outside the usual medical practices.
From February 6, 2014, until July 15, 2020, Otellin continued prescribing controlled substances to the patient while aware that the patient was receiving opiates from another doctor and abusing heroin and fentanyl. During this period, he did not adequately review the patient's medical history or conduct necessary evaluations before prescribing medications.
Otellin also prescribed oxycodone to the patient's wife instead of referring her to a specialist and conducted minimal drug screenings over five years. His prescribing practices led to complaints from pharmacists and resulted in overdoses of two patients.
One patient died from an overdose involving buprenorphine, alprazolam, and gabapentin prescribed by Otellin. Another patient's death involved fentanyl, alprazolam, and diazepam intoxication after being warned about exchanging prescription medication for methamphetamine.
Following his indictment by a federal grand jury on September 22, 2021, Otellin fled to Russia but was later arrested in Armenia in September 2023 with assistance from INTERPOL Washington and Armenian authorities. He was extradited back to the United States on April 20, 2024.
Otellin has surrendered his medical license with the West Virginia Board of Medicine. United States Attorney Will Thompson commented on the case: “Dr. Otellin repeatedly prescribed opiates, stimulants and other drugs outside the normal course of medical practice in communities that continue to suffer from the overdose crisis.”
The sentence was imposed by United States District Judge Irene C. Berger. The case was prosecuted by Trial Attorney Charles D. Strauss along with Assistant United States Attorneys Owen Reynolds and Andrew D. Isabell.
Further information can be accessed through PACER under Case No. 2:21-cr-159.