A grand jury upgraded the indictment against a Nassau County doctor from reckless endangerment to a first-of-its-kind murder charge after five of his patients died in connection with the doctor’s painkiller prescriptions.
County District Attorney Madeline Singas said Dr. George Blatti, a general practitioner, prescribed massive quantities of opioids out of a makeshift storefront. The location had a “Radio Shack” sign and merchandise hanging on the wall.
Singas said Blatti was known by those addicted to opioids as someone willing to write prescriptions without a medical history review or an exam.
"He arrogantly and callously disregarded incessant warnings about his dangerous actions and that his prescription pad was as lethal as any murder weapon," Singas said.
Calls to Blatti’s attorney were not immediately returned.
Blatti could face 25 years in prison if convicted on the grand jury’s top charge, prosecutors said.
