December 18, 2009
Gary Davidson
Public Information Officer

PRESCRIPTION DRUG RING PROBE NETS ANOTHER BIG ARREST

A spin-off of an extensive investigation that toppled a DeBary-based prescription drug ring has netted the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office another big arrest. So far, the Sheriff’s Office has arrested nearly two dozen people during the wide-ranging investigation, dubbed Operation Oxy-Clean. On Friday, investigators nabbed 39-year-old Giovanni Scorpio on warrants charging him with two counts of conspiracy to traffic in Oxycodone. After reviewing the results of the Sheriff’s Office’s investigation, Circuit Court Judge Hubert L. Grimes issued the arrest warrants and ordered Scorpio held on $500,000 bond. Investigators picked up Scorpio at about 5:20 p.m. at his home at 1467 W. New York Ave. in Orange City.

The Sheriff’s Office launched the investigation in September, after receiving a tip about an organized crime ring that was using forged prescriptions to buy massive quantities of pharmaceutical drugs. During a period of less than three months, investigators tied the ring to the purchase of more than 14,000 Oxycodone pills. Reputed ringleader John Davey and 20 of his suspected associates have already been rounded up during the operation. The investigation revealed that Davey would supply the phony prescriptions and the money to pay for the drugs and then get the other defendants to go to local pharmacies to get the prescriptions filled. The drugs would then be turned over to Davey, who would pay his accomplices with pills, money or both. Witnesses said that Davey would sell the pills for $10 each.

Despite all the arrests, deputies continued to look into Scorpio’s involvement after his name surfaced several times during the investigation. At least five witnesses, including Davey, said Scorpio was part of the scheme, leading investigators to believe that he was one of the key figures in the operation. And they got their proof earlier this week when they obtained a subpoena to seize prescriptions from a pharmacy in DeLand. The investigation already had revealed that the prescriptions were forged and filled by one of Scorpio’s known associates. The Sheriff’s Office was able to link Scorpio to the forged prescriptions after lifting his fingerprints off of two of them. That and other information revealed by witnesses during the investigation was enough to convince Judge Grimes to issue the arrest warrants on Friday afternoon. After Scorpio is processed, he will be transported to the Volusia County Branch Jail in Daytona Beach.

And with Scorpio now in custody, investigators expect additional arrests to follow.