Cops: Feasterville woman who took $345K from doctor also wrote 200 fake Rx's

Posted: Wednesday, January 28, 2015

A 48-year-old Feasterville woman awaiting trial on charges she stole nearly $350,000 from her former employer is now accused of stealing more than his money.

Upper Southampton police allege that Susan Simonson also stole a prescription pad from the doctor’s office where she worked for 15 years and wrote nearly 200 prescriptions for thousands of pills, most for powerful painkillers, over three years.

Susan Simonson

Police started investigating Simonson in connection with the fraudulent prescriptions after her October arrest on the theft charges. That’s when the doctor contacted Detective Craig Rudisill claiming a Philadelphia pharmacy had called him to confirm a prescription the doctor had not written. The doctor suspected Simonson and another woman, a former employee.

Simonson had worked in the medical office as a full-time office manager and secretary, police said.

Rudisill reviewed the narcotic prescriptions filed under the doctor’s name since 2011 and found that Simonson filled 76 prescriptions for a total of 6,850 Oxycodone and Percocet tablets between 2011 and September 2014, court documents said.

The doctor confirmed he never wrote Simonson a prescription for the drugs, which were filled at three pharmacies: a chain drug store in Upper Southampton and two independent drug stores in Philadelphia, according to a probable cause affidavit.

During the investigation, Rudisill also discovered another 87 fraudulent prescriptions written to Simonson using the doctor’s prescription pad for drugs including cholesterol reducing medication, water pills and methadone, which is used to treat opiate addiction, the affidavit said.

Simonson — who had been free on bail posted after her October arrest — was arraigned Tuesday night before District Judge Daniel Baranoski on 163 felony counts each of forgery, identity theft, access device fraud, 76 felony counts of prohibited acts as well as theft, and receiving stolen property.

She was sent to Bucks County prison in lieu of 10 percent of $75,000 bail.

The other woman suspected by the doctor in the prescription fraud case has not been charged.

Simonson’s trial in the theft case is set for next month in Bucks County Court. She is facing 700 counts of forgery as well as theft, and receiving stolen property charges for allegedly stealing the money between 2007 and July from the medical office.

Jo Ciavaglia: 215-949-4181; email: jciavaglia@calkins.com; Twitter: @jociavaglia