By Rachel Baldwin
Williamson Daily News
WILLIAMSON, W.Va. — The final installment of the property and cash seized from Mountain Medical Care Clinic, a “pill mill” that was shut down in 2010, was officially presented to the West Virginia State Police on Monday morning, during a press conference held by West Virginia U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin.
The Williamson office building that formerly housed the clinic, along with more than $340,000 in cash forfeited by one of its operators, now will belong to the state police.
Goodwin, joined by U.S. Marshal John Foster, Federal Bureau of Investigation Senior Supervisory Resident Agent in Charge Chris Courtright and other members of law enforcement, presented West Virginia State Police Superintendent Col. C.R. “Jay” Smithers with a check for $341,937.61 Monday in front of the former West Third Avenue pill mill, shut down in 2010 following an extensive federal investigation that ended with several criminal convictions.
“This pill mill did enormous harm across a wide swath of Mingo County and beyond,” Goodwin said. “Now we’ve put its operators in prison and hit them in the pocketbook, to the tune of more than $1.5 million.”
Goodwin added, “A few years back, I made a commitment to go after pill dealers, along with the proceeds generated from their illegal activities. Today’s announcement is a result of that commitment. Every time we put a pill mill out of business, it’s a big step toward getting this district’s biggest crime problem under control.”