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U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

Inspections, Compliance, Enforcement, and Criminal Investigations

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  • Criminal Investigations

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    March 23, 2012: Spearfish Man Indicted on Several Counts of Mail Fraud and Misbranding of a Drug

     

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    Food and Drug Administration 
    Office of Criminal Investigations

     


     

     

                 U.S. Department of Justice Press Release

     

    		 

    For Immediate Release
    March 23, 2012

    United States Attorney  

    District of South Dakota

    Contact: Mark E. Salter

    Assistant United States Attorney

    (605) 357-2360

     

     

                    

    United States Attorney Brendan V. Johnson announced that a Spearfish man has been indicted by a federal grand jury for allegedly using the United States mails as part of a fraudulent scheme to convince people that he could heal or cure illnesses and for allegedly causing drugs to become mislabeled.

    John Martin, age 73, was indicted by a federal grand jury on March 20, 2012, for Mail Fraud and Misbranding of a Drug. He appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Veronica L. Duffy on March 22, 2012, and pled not guilty to the indictment. The maximum penalty upon conviction of each count of Mail Fraud is 20 years' imprisonment and/or a $250,000 fine; the maximum penalty upon conviction of each count of Misbranding of a Drug is 1 year imprisonment and/or a $100,000 fine. The charges are merely accusations, and Martin is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.

    The investigation is being conducted by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration-Office of Criminal Investigations, the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation, the Spearfish Police Department, the Belle Fourche Police Department, and the Butte County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Eric Kelderman is prosecuting the case. Martin was released on bond pending trial. A trial date has not yet been set.                          
     

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