McAlester Doctor Pleads Guilty To Unlawful Distribution And Dispensing Of A Controlled Substance

MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced that Nelson Onaro, age 61, of McAlester, Oklahoma entered a guilty plea to Count Six of a Superseding Information which charged him with six counts of Unlawful Distribution and Dispensing of a Controlled Substance in violation of Title 21 U.S.C §§ 841(a)(1) and 841(b)(1)(C), punishable by up to 20 years of imprisonment, a fine up to $1,000,000 or both.

Dr. Onaro was initially charged by a federal grand jury in September 2020 with twenty-four counts of Unlawful Distribution and Dispensing of Controlled Substances. During the hearing, Onaro admitted to writing a prescription for the controlled substance Adderall for one of his staff members with the understanding that the staff member would fill the prescription and deliver the pills back to Onaro for his personal use.

As part of the plea agreement, Onaro has agreed to surrender his Oklahoma medical license.

The charges arose from a long-term investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the United States Department of Justice Healthcare Fraud Strikeforce, and the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics.

The Honorable Kimberly E. West, U.S. Magistrate Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, in Muskogee, accepted the plea and ordered the completion of a presentence investigation report.  The defendant was released on a personal recognizance bond pending sentencing.

Department of Justice Trial Attorneys Dan Griffin and Christopher Jason, and Assistant United States Attorney Ryan Conway represented the United States.