WILLIAMSON, W.Va. — Property and cash forfeited from a notorious Mingo County pill mill now belongs to the West Virginia State Police.
U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin along with other federal officials handed State Police Superintendent Col. C.R. “Jay” Smithers the check Monday during a press conference in Williamson.
“A final installment of $341,000 plus that we handed over to the West Virginia State Police, in cash,” said Goodwin. “As well as the buildings there that housed this pill mill.”
The presentation took place in front of the building which use to be the home of the Mountain Medical Care Clinic, a large pill mill that was shut down in 2010 following an extensive federal investigation that ended with several criminal convictions.
There are now pill mills like this one still in existence. I mean, this was blatant,” Goodwin said. “There was lines of people out the door and around the block for days on end.”
The office building and cash proceeds handed over Monday were forfeited by Myra Sue Miller, 50, one of the pill mill operators.
Miller used a DEA registration number that belonged to her former boss, Mingo County doctor William Ryckman, to hand out prescriptions for powerful narcotics in exchange for cash from individuals at Mountain Medical. She pleaded guilty to the crime back in March 2013.
In September 2013, Miller was sentenced to six months in federal prison. Ryckman was convicted in March 2012 for his role in the conspiracy and sentenced to six months in prison followed by one year of supervised release.
Overall, more than one and a half million dollars was forfeited from the clinic.
The West Virginia State Police plan to auction the building off and use the cash received Monday to purchase some new police vehicles.