By Betty Lawrence
blawrence@dailystandard.com Celina physician Dr. Thomas Santanello was found guilty on 86 felony counts of drug trafficking, illegal processing of drug documents and two misdemeanor counts of obstructing official business and justice in Mercer County Common Pleas Court.
Santanello entered a plea of no contest before visiting Judge Jeffrey M. Welbaum on Thursday afternoon. Welbaum subsequently found him guilty of all 88 counts.
The drug charges are fourth- and fifth-degree felonies and the obstruction charges are first- and second-degree misdemeanors. They carry a potential of more than 112 years imprisonment and fines of $346,750.
As part of the plea bargain arrangement reached earlier between the doctor's three attorneys and Mercer County Prosecuting Attorney Andy Hinders and Assistant Prosecutor Matt Fox, Santanello's original indictments totaling 214 felony charges were dismissed. He previously pled not guilty to those charges. They ranged from drug law violations and Ohio Bureau of Worker's Compensation fraud to overprescription of narcotic substances.
In the plea agreement, Santanello, who lives at Southmoor Shores in St. Marys with his family, agreed to permanent surrender of his Ohio medical and DEA licenses. The DEA license permits him to prescribe medication. He also must pay the state's investigation costs of $150,880, a portion of which is to be paid before sentencing. He also is responsible for paying $99,120 for the misdemeanor obstruction counts.
By pleading no contest, Santanello waived his right to a jury trial and Welbaum set a Sept. 23 sentencing date at 11 a.m. in the local court room.
"I'm looking forward to speaking about all the issues in regards to the charges and plea bargain at the sentencing," the 52-year-old physician said in a subdued voice after Welbaum found him guilty.
Attorneys for the doctor and county prosecutors also said they were now focusing on the sentencing.
Fourth- and fifth-degree felonies carry prisons terms and fines. For each fourth-degree count, the penalty is 6-18 months and a $5,000 fine. For each fifth-degree count, the penalty is 6-12 months and a $2,500 fine.
Possible sentence for the misdemeanor charges are, first-degree, 90 days and $750 fine and second-degree, 180 days and $1,000 fine.
Present at the hearing Thursday were Barry Niekamp with the Grand Lake Task Force; Bob Cole, Ohio Pharmacy Board supervisor and pharmacy board investigator Kevin Kinneer and Greg McGlaun, with the State of Ohio Medical Board.
Santanello, a doctor of osteopathic medicine who specialized in pain management, neurological and spinal disorders and sports medicine, had practiced in Celina at 1107 N. Main Street.
In April 2001, the Mercer County Prosecutor's Office and representatives from local and state medical and drug agencies executed a search warrant of Santanello's medical office and confiscated nearly 200 boxes of patient and business records, office equipment, medicine and ammunition.
The material had been seized as evidence for investigations that already were underway by the Grand Lake Task Force, Ohio Worker's Compensation Bureau, Ohio Pharmacy Board and Ohio Medical Board.
The search warrant affidavits from the four agencies alleged Santanello filed false insurance claims with the Workers' Compensation bureau and its insurance agencies, over prescribed narcotic substances to his patients and allowed office employees to perform medical procedures they were not licensed or trained to carry out.
He subsequently was arrested by the Celina Police Department at his home in September 2002 and he pleaded not guilty to the 214 felony offenses that had been lodged against him by a Mercer County Grand Jury. |
