Guilty verdict for pain clinic doctor accused of drug crimes, money laundering

FLORIDA –A jury has convicted a Florida pain clinic doctor of unlawful drug distribution, money laundering, and filing a false tax return.

Dr. Qing McGaha has been found guilty by a federal jury on 14 counts of unlawful drug distribution, four counts of money laundering, and one count of filing a false tax return, according to United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg.

McGaha faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison for each count of unlawful drug distribution, up to 10 years for each money laundering count, and three years’ imprisonment for filing a false tax return. Her sentencing hearing is scheduled for September 15, 2023. McGaha had been indicted on January 2, 2023.

According to testimony and evidence presented at trial, McGaha was a Florida-licensed medical doctor who owned and operated MD Care Clinic, a pain management clinic in Hillsborough County.

Over a 20-month period, undercover agents with the Drug Enforcement Administration conducted numerous appointments with McGaha. At each appointment, they reportedly received hydrocodone, hydromorphone, or oxycodone, Schedule II controlled substances not for a legitimate medical purpose in the usual course of professional practice.

Between January 2016 and January 2021, McGaha was accused of distributing more than 2.1 million opioid pills.

In addition, prosecutors said McGaha engaged in multiple monetary transactions over $10,000 in funds criminally derived from the operation of her clinic. She is said to have used these funds to purchase a piece of real property in Clearwater and deposited them into her bank account.

In 2021, McGaha filed false and fraudulent tax forms for tax year 2020 that underreported MD Care’s gross revenue by nearly $300,000, said the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida.

Assistant United States Attorney Greg Pizzo is prosecuting this case.