Doctor Sentenced to Six Years in Prison for Distributing Opioids to Patients

A New Jersey doctor who dubbed himself as the “Candy Man” and the “El Chapo of Opioids” was sentenced Thursday to six years in federal prison for writing scripts for patients who didn’t need them, some of whom he never even saw.

Robert Delagente, 48, of Oakland, New Jersey, previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Claire C. Cecchi in Newark federal court to an indictment charging him with one count of conspiracy to distribute controlled dangerous substances, three counts of distribution of controlled dangerous substances, and one count of falsifying medical records. Judge Cecchi imposed the sentence on May 5, 2022.

According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:

Beginning in May 2014, Delagente was a doctor at a medical practice called North Jersey Family Medicine (NJFM) in Oakland, New Jersey. Delagente knowingly prescribed controlled substances, such as oxycodone, Percocet, Tylenol with codeine, and various benzodiazepines (alprazolam, diazepam, clonazepam, and temazepam), outside the ordinary course of professional practice and without a legitimate medical purpose. He ignored the inherent danger and medical risk of overdose, drug abuse, and death that can accompany prescriptions of highly addictive opioids, benzodiazepines, and muscle relaxers, both on their own and in combination with one another.

Delagente also was charged with altering medical records of patients who received controlled substance prescriptions from him after law enforcement officials had subpoenaed the records in late April 2019.

“This defendant knowingly prescribed for his patients some of the most dangerous and addictive drugs available, sometimes with no more contact than a text message from the patient,” U.S. Attorney Carpenito said in a statement after Delagente’s guilty plea. “Many of these patients were dealing with pain and addiction, and instead of getting help from their doctor, they were drawn deeper into the cycle of drug abuse.”

Delagente also pleaded guilty in 2019 to state charges of health care claims fraud for $32,000 in services he never rendered, leading to the temporary suspension of his medical license, according to the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office.

In addition to the prison term, Judge Cecchi sentenced Delagente to three years of supervised release.

U.S. Attorney Sellinger credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Michael Messenger in Newark, with the investigation leading to today’s sentencing. The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jason S. Gould of the Health Care Fraud Unit and Sean M. Sherman of the Opioids Unit in Newark.