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A Delaware County chiropractor was arrested and charged for allegedly writing forging doctors’ signatures on prescriptions for painkiller drugs, according to District Attorney Katayoun M. Copeland.
Copeland announced Wednesday the arrest of chiropractor Marc Steven Persson, 40, of Swarthmore and owner of Perssonal Health Chiropractor in Ridley, for the alleged fraudulent prescriptions.
Persson is charged with six counts each of felony delivery and felony criminal attempt to deliver a controlled substance charges, as well as forgery and other related offenses, the DA’s office said.
He was released on $50,000 unsecured bail and is slated to appear for his preliminary hearing on Dec. 5, court records show.
Persson is accused of writing fraudulent prescriptions for powerful and addictive painkillers, such as Percocet and Oxycodone, to his chiropractic patients, according to the DA’s office.
His arrest comes at the conclusion of an undercover investigation by members of the Delaware County Criminal Investigation Division (CID) Drug Task Force including Detectives Shawn McGee, Sean Brydges, and Gerald Scanlon, and Lieutenant John Hamill of the Ridley Township Police Department.
On May 9, 2017, Ridley Township Police were called to Perssonal Health Chiropractor, on East Chester Pike in the Ridley Park section of Ridley Township, the DA’s office said.
Upon arrival, officers spoke with an employee who told them Persson had been writing fraudulent prescriptions for chiropractic patients, according to the DA’s office.
The employee also told police that some local CVS Pharmacies had rejected and flagged as fraudulent several prescriptions given by Perssonal Health Chiropractic to patients, the DA’s office said.
Investigation by detectives showed that Persson and a medical doctor had previously been business partners, according to the DA’s office.
Persson would perform chiropractic work and the medical doctor would write prescriptions for the patients of the practice, the DA’s office said.
In Spring 2017, the doctor left Perssonal Health Chiropractic and a different licensed physician was brought in on a per diem basis to see patients at the Perssonal Health Chiropractic. However, after both medical doctors had left the practice, Persson began writing prescriptions for patients and forged the names of the two doctors on those prescriptions, the DA’s office alleges.
He is also accused of “calling in” prescriptions to pharmacies for chiropractic patients, posing as a doctor, to obtain the prescriptions for patients, the DA’s office said.
Detectives later interviewed Persson, who admitted that despite not being a licensed doctor, he had illegally written several fraudulent prescriptions for his chiropractic patients, according to the DA’s office.
Persson allegedly wrote fraudulent prescriptions and forged doctor signatures for Oxycodone, Xanax, and Gabapentin, for six different patients from April to May 2017, accordinf to the DA’s office.
Copeland commended the detectives who worked on the case and noted the seriousness of these crimes which ultimately contribute to the heroin epidemic seen in Delaware County and across the region.
“Every day, opioids are killing our loved ones across the state, and the abuse of prescription drugs still remain a risk factor when it comes to heroin use and addiction,” Copeland said. “While the majority of practitioners here in Delaware County are law-abiding professionals who care deeply about their patients, the reckless and careless actions of Mr. Persson show a complete disregard for the well-being of his patients who he put in grave danger. Our CID Drug Task Force continually works to arrest both drug dealers and practitioners who profit from the weakness of those struggling with addiction. I would like to commend Ridley Township Police Detectives Shawn McGee, Sean Brydges, and Gerald Scanlon, and Lieutenant John Hamill of the Delaware County District Attorney’s Office CID Drug Task Force and Deputy District Attorney Sharon McKenna, Chief of the Narcotics Unit, who is prosecuting the case. Together, we will continue to aggressively arrest and prosecute individuals who are perpetuating the drug epidemic that is tearing families apart in our community.”