A federal grand jury has charged a Franklin County man who used his Kentucky government email account to import and sell mislabeled generic Viagra and Cialis pills.
Viagra (sildenafil) and Cialis (tadalafil) are prescription drugs used for the treatment of erectile dysfunction (ED), a condition characterized by the inability to attain or sustain an erection for satisfactory sexual intercourse.
On Thursday, the jury indicted Howard Stanley Head Jr. on charges of conspiracy and smuggling mislabeled prescription ED drugs into the United States. He was also charged for receiving misbranded drugs.
According to the jury’s indictment, Head was employed at the Kentucky Finance & Administration Cabinet at the time.
Head ordered wholesale shipments of generic ED pills containing sildenafil and tadalafil from suppliers in India, Singapore, and elsewhere. The consignment was destined to his home in Franklin County or the home of his friend.
He ordered hundreds of generic ED pills at a time, picking up a package in October 2019 with 1,000 doses of each of the drugs, according to the indictment.
The jury said suppliers labeled the consignments as “supplements” or something else to hide the true contents of the drugs.
Head used to re-sell the pills in smaller quantities, although he has no license to dispense prescription drugs.
The indictment said Head the persona of “Dr. Head” and the business name “Dr. Head’s Meds,” referring to the pills through his state emails to customers with code names, such as “blue magic” or “energy vitamins.”
Citing one example, the jury said when a customer asked him in October 2017 whether the “drugstore” was still open, Head responded from his Kentucky government email, “Of course . . . never run dry.” Head took part in the scheme from July 2015 through October 2019, but no longer works at the cabinet. He might have to face 20 years in prison.
