Crimes Nearby: Doc Busted for for Illegally Prescribing Pain Meds

A New Jersey man was arrested and charged with scamming a Long Island contractor out of $75,000 that was supposed to pay for new windows in a Lido Beach home, Nassau County District Attorney Kathleen Rice announced Thursday. 

Scott Brown, 50, of Point Pleasant, N.J., was arrested Thursday by DA Investigators and charged with second-degree grand larceny. He faces up to 15 years in prison if convicted and is scheduled to be arraigned in First District Court in Hempstead on Thursday.

Rice said that in the summer of 2012, Brown, the owner of Retail Renovation, LLC in Manasquan, N.J., falsely represented by a Nassau County general contractor that he was an authorized dealer of Western Window Systems. The contractor agreed to pay Brown $75,000 to purchase and install the high-end windows in a new home project in Lido Beach. Brown told the contractor that he would have the windows ready for installation in approximately 12 weeks.

After receiving a down payment of $40,000 in July 2012 and the remaining $35,000 the following month, Brown deposited the money into his bank account without ever ordering the windows. Brown’s bank records indicate that he used some of the stolen funds to pay personal expenses such as credit card payments, fishing gear, restaurants, and trips to Florida, as well as for business supplies and industry vendors.

Brown returned to the Lido Beach site in December 2012 and told the contractor that he had never ordered the windows because his sister had stolen the money. Demands for the return of the money and repeated attempts to contact Brown thereafter were unsuccessful. The contractor subsequently contacted the DA’s Office.

RVCPD: Local Doctor Illegally Prescribed Pain Meds

A Baldwin-based doctor was arrested Tuesday morning after an investigation by the Rockville Centre Police Department (RVCPD) discovered that the doctor had allegedly been illegally prescribing addictive painkillers to patients.

In an joint investigation initiated by the RVCPD in connection with the New York State Attorney General’s Office, it was learned that Anand Persuad had been illegally prescribing highly addictive painkillers, such as oxycodone, for cash without properly examining patients or documenting the transactions, police said.

Persuad, 44, of Baldwin Harbor, had “medical” patients — those with regular medical issues — who were charged $110 for an office visit.

However, police said that Persuad “pain management” patients — drug users and addicts — who were charged $250 or more for an office visit that included a prescription for a controlled substance, such as oxycodone.

According to police, Persaud did not conduct a physical examination of the “pain management” patients or even question them about their need for the medication. 

The defendants in the June 2012 assault on Roxen Road had a new charge brought against them last week as court proceedings continued.

According to New York State Courts, Matthew Diperna, William Moore, Kevin Coyle, William Nelson and Nolan Kelly were all charged with attempted assault with intent to cause physical injury with a weapon, a class E felony.

The class C felony charge of second-degree gang assault remains as the top charge, among multiple others, against all five defendants.

All five defendants are scheduled to return to Nassau County First District on Aug. 8.