GROSSE POINTE PARK (WWJ) -- A pharmacist in Grosse Pointe Park has been charged in what police say was an illegal drug ring operating in several metro Detroit communities.
According to federal officials, 60-year-old New Baltimore resident Hasna Iwas knowingly filled hundreds of fraudulent prescriptions for highly-addictive painkillers such as oxycodone, hydrocodone, and codeine syrup -- as well as Xanax and other drugs -- at her Beacon Pointe Pharmacy.
The filled prescriptions, which were issued from a clinic run by Dr. Otis Crawford, had a total estimated street value of over $2 million.
Crawford and three others had previously been charged with operating the drug ring in cities such as Detroit, Grosse Pointe and River Rouge.
Now added to that indictment, Iwas is facing federal charges of unlawful distribution of prescription drugs, conspiracy, and unlawfully maintaining drug-involved premises.
“Dispensing controlled substances is a privilege that requires abiding by the law,” said Special Agent in Charge Keith Martin. “DEA is committed to ensuring that those who have pledged to follow our nation’s drug laws are living up to that responsibility.”
Iwas maintains her innocence, and insists that she always required patients to be present in order to fill any controlled substance prescriptions.
However, police say one of the forged prescriptions in question was filled a day after one "patient" was murdered.
Meanwhile, Dr. Otis Crawford died of natural causes before being sentenced for his alleged involvement in the drug ring.
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