Marlin Webb Conspired to Defraud the FDA
Abingdon, VIRGINIA - The former store manager of the Carroll County Cooperative, who previously pled guilty to conspiring to defraud the Food and Drug Administration, was sentenced today in the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia in Abingdon, Acting United States Attorney Rick A. Mountcastle announced.
Marlin Webb, 58, of Woodlawn, Virginia, who is now the company manager of Southwest Farm Supply, Inc., previously pled guilty to one felony count of conspiracy to defraud the FDA. Today in District Court, Webb was sentenced to probation for a term of one year. At the time of his guilty plea, Webb paid $125,000 in forfeiture and other payments.
According to evidence presented at previous hearings by Assistant United States Attorney Randy Ramseyer, Webb was the store manager at the Carroll County Cooperative, through which he illegally obtained, stored, and sold veterinary prescription drugs. Federal regulation of prescription veterinary drugs are not primarily to protect animals from the potential harms of prescription drugs, but are to protect the human food supply from unsafe drug residues in the edible tissues of animals sold for slaughter. Accordingly, veterinary prescription drugs must stay within the controlled chain of distribution to ensure the drugs’ safety and efficacy. Webb obtained and distributed prescription veterinary drugs outside of the controlled chain through his position at the store. The Carroll County Cooperative terminated Webb’s employment after a federal search warrant was executed at the store in April of 2015. Large quantities of prescription drugs were seized from Webb’s office during the search.
The investigation of the case was conducted by the Food and Drug Administration - Office of Criminal Investigations and the Virginia Department of Health Professions. Assistant United States Attorney Randy Ramseyer prosecuted the case for the United States.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
