| Businessman sentenced for drug sale |
By: DAVID HENKE, Staff Writer
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Posted: Wednesday, November 18, 2009 11:50 am
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MINNEAPOLIS — A Northfield businessman charged with selling prescription pills through his drug disposal company received a two-year prison sentence Tuesday in federal court.
Mark Andrew Goetz, 41, of Prior Lake, was sentenced in the United States District Court to 48 months in prison on one count of distribution of controlled substances. Goetz was indicted on May 20 and pleaded guilty on July 28.
Goetz owned Pharmaceutical Returns, a reverse distributor of controlled substances with offices on Division Street.
According to a Drug Enforcement Administration affidavit, Goetz’s company was authorized by the DEA to collect controlled substances, return them to drug companies for credit or destroy them at approved incinerators.
But instead of disposing of the drugs, Goetz was selling them. In January DEA agents purchased 99 tablets of Xanax, an anti-anxiety medication, from Goetz. In May, agents arranged another controlled transaction with Goetz, at which point they bought 1,274 tablets of prescription painkiller Oxycontin, and an additional 245 tablets of Xanax.
After the second purchase, Goetz was arrested by authorities. They seized a small amount of a controlled substance and a laptop computer.
“As a reverse distributor, Mr. Goetz had the responsibility to return controlled substances to the manufacturer or destroy them,” Gary G. Olenkiewicz said in a press release. Olenkiewicz is a special agent in charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Chicago Field Division, which includes Minnesota.
“Instead, he chose to make a profit from them on the black market, which makes him no different than a street dealer pushing cocaine or heroin.”
Rice County residents can anonymously deposit outdated or unneeded prescription drugs, over-the-counter medications or illegal drugs in secure disposal boxes at the Faribault and Northfield Police Departments as part of “Take It to the Box”, a joint project between several community partners. The boxes, located in the department lobbies, are open all day, seven days a week.
— David Henke covers city, business and youth issues. He can be reached at dhenke@northfieldnews.com or 645-1100. |
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