Former South Hills pharmacist gets 1 year in federal prison for fraud, drug charges

A former South Hills pharmacist who struggled with opioid addiction for decades will serve one year in federal prison after pleading guilty last year to fraud and drug offenses.

Timothy W. Forester, 46, of Venetia was sentenced Thursday by Senior U.S. District Judge David S. Cercone on counts including health care fraud conspiracy, misbranding drugs and obtaining controlled substances by fraud.

According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Forester owned four pharmacies: Century Square Pharmacy in West Mifflin, Prescription Center Plus in McMurray and Eighty Four, and Library Pharmacy in South Park.

Prosecutors said Forester used his pharmacy license and DEA registration to place orders for controlled substances. After he obtained the deliveries, he did not place them in the stores’ inventories. Instead, he took them to his home, where he divided them into smaller units and smaller bags.

During Thursday’s hearing, Forester’s defense attorney, Ashli McKeivier, said that by dividing the opioids into small baggies, her client was controlling the quantity he was using.

They were all for personal use, she said.

“He was not distributing,” McKeivier said. “It just became part of the routine of addiction.”

Forester told the court he was taking hundreds of pills each day.

The day that agents served a warrant on Forester’s home in March 2019, he went to the hospital for treatment, followed by rehab, and has been sober since, McKeivier said.

In his statement to the court, Forester apologized to his family, the community, the court system and his colleagues. He said he had no words that could repair the damage he caused to their livelihoods and his reputation.

“I loved helping people,” he said.

Forester told the court he knew he couldn’t sustain his drug addiction.

“Honestly, I’m thankful to be alive,” he said. “I’m in better physical and spiritual health than I’ve been in decades.”

In addition to the charges related to controlled substances, Forester also admitted that he took generic versions of drugs and relabeled them under brand names. He then sold them as the brand name product to pharmacy customers.

Investigators also said Forester defrauded Medicare by submitting false claims for versions of medications he knew were not being dispensed.

According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the loss from fraud was about $680,000.

During Thursday’s hearing, Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert Cessar commended Forester for being able to address his addiction.

“Most defendants don’t do that,” he said. “They come back and come back and come back.”

But, Cessar continued, he wondered why Forester misbranded medications or committed fraud in the first place given that his net worth is around $5 million.

Those crimes, he said, “showed a certain level of sophistication.”

“He might have been a very high-functioning addict, but still was able to think through his processes,” Cessar said. “He didn’t need to defraud Medicare.”

Cessar asked for a guideline range sentence of 30 to 37 months in federal prison, while McKeivier asked that her client be given probation and community service.

In handing down Forester’s sentence, Cercone said he believes that a prison sentence is necessary to deter others in similar circumstances from committing similar crimes.

In addition to the prison term, Forester must pay a $10,000 fine and serve two years of supervised release. He also forfeited a 2018 Lincoln Navigator and more than $150,000 found in his home.