TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) A northeast Kansas doctor accused of illegally distributing prescription drugs will remain in federal custody for now.
Fifty-three-year-old Michael Schuster was indicted May 1 on multiple counts alleging he operated a pill mill from his clinic in Manhattan. U.S. Magistrate Judge Gary Sebelius on Thursday denied Schuster’s request to set bail, calling him a flight risk.
Sebelius said Schuster and his wife had misled authorities about their assets and the whereabouts of their passports after the charges were filed.
Schuster pleaded not guilty earlier this week to charges alleging he engaged in a scheme to unlawfully distribute controlled substances from April 2007 until at least August 2012.
He’s accused of directing and allowing staff members to dispense controlled substances in his absence, using blank, signed prescription pads he left behind when he traveled.
