A former Delaware doctor was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison for unlawful drug distribution and maintaining drug-dispensing premises.
Patrick Titus, 58, of Milford, was convicted by a federal jury in July 2021 of 13 counts. He had practiced medicine for two decades, according to a medical profile
“This sentence is a reminder that the Department of Justice will hold accountable those doctors who are illegitimately prescribing opioids and fueling the country’s opioid crisis,” said Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “Doctors who commit these unlawful acts exploit their roles as stewards of their patients’ care for their own profit.”
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Titus distributed or dispensed a variety of powerful opioids – including fentanyl, morphine, methadone, OxyContin, and oxycodone – outside the usual scope of professional practice.
Titus operated an internal medicine practice where he frequently prescribed the substances in high dosages, sometimes in combination with each other or in other dangerous combinations, mostly in exchange for cash. Such operations are often described as “pill mills.”
Evidence at trial showed he distributed over 1 million opioid pills.
“DEA-registered medical practitioners have an important role in our communities to treat patients compassionately and responsibly,” said DEA Administrator Anne Milgram. “Today’s sentencing makes clear that medical professionals who recklessly prescribe opioids and endanger the safety and health of patients will be held accountable. I applaud the outstanding investigative work conducted by DEA’s Wilmington Resident Office Tactical Diversion Squad and the Department of Justice’s prosecution of the case.”
