LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) - Law enforcement officials in Lincoln have arrested a local orthopedic surgeon, accusing him of a ruse to feed his opioid addiction.
Lancaster County Sheriff Terry Wagner said Dr. Keith Hughes, 55, carried out a scheme to write fraudulent oxycodone prescriptions to a patient, which he then bought from the man.
Deputies arrested Hughes on Tuesday following a monthslong investigation, the Lincoln Journal Star reported. Wagner said Hughes, a doctor at Nebraska Foot and Ankle, has written 63 prescriptions for 4,300 pills over the last two years to Colby Digilio, 32, of Lincoln. Hughes would either pay cash for the pills or swap services or items, such as food, sports memorabilia and clothing, for them, Wagner said.
Hughes and Digilio were arrested Tuesday after deputies watched Digilio pick up a prescription, then drive to meet up with Hughes in south Lincoln, Wagner said.
A recorded message at Nebraska Foot and Ankle in Lincoln said the office would be closed until Friday. A message left by The Associated Press at the office was not immediately returned Thursday.
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