TAMPA, Fla. – A federal judge has permanently barred a Tampa-area pharmacist from ever dispensing controlled substances again following accusations that he ran an operation rife with forgery, price gouging, and prescriptions filled for patients who were already dead.
On Monday, the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida entered a civil penalty and permanent injunction against Nathaniel Esalomi, the former owner and sole pharmacist of Apexx Pharmacy in Hudson.
The order stems from a complaint filed by the United States in August 2022, which painted a picture of a pharmacy operating well outside the bounds of the law. Prosecutors alleged that Esalomi knowingly filled invalid prescriptions for powerful opioids, turning his license into a tool for profit rather than patient care.
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According to court documents, the scheme involved charging customers “dramatically inflated” prices for drugs, often collecting thousands of dollars in cash transactions. The government further alleged that Esalomi instructed individuals to forge signatures on forms and falsify addresses to cover his tracks.
Perhaps the most startling allegation in the complaint was that Esalomi filled numerous controlled substance prescriptions for individuals who were deceased at the time.
“Medical professionals who knowingly facilitate the abuse of opioids violate their legal obligations,” said Assistant Attorney General Brett A. Shumate of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “The Department will pursue justice against anyone who seeks to profit from unlawfully distributing opioids.”
Under the terms of the consent judgment approved by U.S. District Judge Thomas Barber, Esalomi agreed to settle the allegations. The order permanently prohibits him from owning, managing, or controlling any entity that dispenses controlled substances.
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While a $500,000 civil penalty was levied against him, the judgment requires Esalomi to pay $10,000, with the remainder suspended. Apexx Pharmacy, which was closed following a temporary restraining order in 2022, remains dissolved.
Officials highlighted the case as part of a broader crackdown on the contributors to the national overdose crisis.
“The opioid epidemic has devastated not only our communities here in Florida but the entire nation,” said U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe. DEA Special Agent in Charge Deanne L. Reuter added that with approximately 70 percent of American overdose deaths involving opioids, the agency remains “steadfast in our effort to remove these poisons from our communities.”
In addition to the federal civil judgment, Esalomi faced legal repercussions at the state level, pleading no contest to related criminal charges brought by the State of Florida. The federal investigation was led by the DEA’s Tactical Diversion Squad in Tampa.
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