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Wellington man gets prison for Oxy Alley

By Palm Beach Business.com

WEST PALM BEACH — A Wellington man has been sentenced to seven years in prison after pleading guilty to racketeering conspiracy charges in connection with a massive pill mill operation in Palm Beach and Broward counties.

Gino Marquez, 30, is the latest of 32 defendants caught in Operation Oxy Alley to be sentenced.  Federal Judge Kenneth Marra also ordered Marquez also must service one year of supervised release following his prison term. Marquez pleaded guilty in February.

To date, 27 defendants, including Marquez, have been sentenced since the Oxy Alley indictment was unsealed last August.

Oxy Alley centered around four pain management clinics operated by Palm Beach County twin brothers Christopher and Jeffrey George. Prosecutors alleged that the clinics were covers for the illegal distribution of prescription drugs. Court records state that the operation dispensed as many as 20 million oxycodone pills and generated more than $40 million from illegal sales.

The George brothers pleaded guilty last fall; Christopher George is serving 17 and half years in prison, plus three years of supervised release, while Jeffrey George is serving a little over 15 years, also with supervised release.

Of the 32 defendants charged, 13 are doctors.