By John Burton
MIDDLETOWN — A former medical doctor, who was convicted of illegally selling prescriptions for controlled dangerous substances, is one of five former physicians the state Division of Consumer Affairs is looking to permanently revoke their state registrations to prescribe drugs.
Richard Lucente, who maintained a practice in the township and in Staten Island, N.Y., was convicted in 2010 in a Brooklyn, N.Y., court for selling prescriptions for various controlled substances, including opiate painkillers and anabolic steroids, as well as psychedelic drugs DXM, LSZ, and mescaline. He was sentenced to five years probation and 200 hours of community service.
Authorities said among those to whom Lucente sold steroid and human growth hormone prescriptions was a male bodybuilder who had undergone a heart transplant and was on a regiment of anti-rejection medications, with the steroids abuse contributing to his death.
The state Board of Medical Examiners revoked Lucente’s license in May 2010.
The revoking of state issued CDS licenses provides an additional layer of protection for the public, should any of these individuals seek reinstatement from the board of medical examiners, state officials said.
