Carthage counselor sentenced for prescription drug conspiracies

A Carthage licensed professional counselor yesterday was sentenced for her role in conspiracies to illegally distribute $1.5 million in prescription drugs and launder the proceeds.

Tammy Neil, 43, was sentenced to a year in federal prison without parole and ordered to pay a $10,000 fine. She and her late husband, Dr. John Freitas, owned and operate Carthage-based Complete Quick Care Clinic. Neil ran the day-to-day operations of the clinic and the weight loss side of the business, while Freitas provided health care services to patients, according to news release from the office of the U.S. attorney for the Western District of Missouri.

Sentenced by U.S. District Judge Richard Dorr, Neil also was ordered to forfeit to the government items purchased from the proceeds of the illegal conduct: a 2007 Jaguar, a 1966 Piper airplane and $10,000 as a substitute asset for a 2008 Cadillac Escalade. The court also ordered Neil to forfeit an additional $200,000, representing proceeds garnered from the distribution of controlled substances.

In July 2012, Neil pleaded guilty to illegally distributing phentermine, a weight loss stimulant that suppresses appetite. During the same time frame - Jan. 1, 2005-March 26, 2008 - Neil admitted she engaged in money laundering by aiding and abetting others to conduct financial transactions involving the illegal distribution of phentermine. During the roughly three-year period, Neil and Freitas deposited more than $1.5 million into multiple bank accounts, the release said.

As the head of the weight loss clinic, Neil was tasked with seeing more than half of the clinic's patients every day. She had her employees weigh the patients, chart their weight and then sell them phentermine, which patients referred to as "synthetic meth."

As a licensed counselor, Neil was not authorized to prescribe or dispense controlled substances, including phentermine. Because of this, her patients received the drug illegally and not for legitimate medical purposes, the release said.

The case was prosecuted by Randall Eggert and Cynthia Hyde, assistant U.S. attorneys, and was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and its diversion division; Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation; the Carthage Police Department; and the Missouri State Highway Patrol.