Medhaps

Feds Indict Doctor of “Using a Weapon of Mass Destruction”

Posted on 11. Jan, 2010 in News Stories

While this story isn’t a “medical mishap,” it certainly is an example of the crazy things some doctors do regarding their profession.

One morning in February of last year, the head of the Arkansas Medical Board, Dr. Trent Pierce, was getting ready to step into his car when an explosion ripped apart his vehicle and left him blind in his left eye. He also lost a significant portion of his hearing and was severely burned.

Soon after, the police identified a man named Randeep Mann, 51 years old, as a suspect because of repeated run-ins with the medical board. Randeep Mann was a doctor that specialized in pain management.

Twice, the medical board had revoked Dr. Mann’s ability to prescribe narcotics because some of his patients died or suffered brain damage from drug overdoses. As a pain specialist, being unable to prescribe medications effectively ended his ability to continue his medical practice. He was understandably upset at the board and also at Dr. Pierce who was its chairman. Dr. Mann sued the board twice claiming discrimination, but was unsuccessful.

Not long after the bombing, police searched Dr. Mann’s property and found a cache of weapons and explosives, including a grenade launcher. Besides being a doctor, Dr. Mann was also a licensed weapons dealer. And as one might suspect, some of the weapons he had were not legally registered. This led Federal prosecutors to charge Dr. Mann with possession of unregistered firearms. He pled not guilty to those charges. At that time, however, he was not charged in connection to the February bombing of Dr. Pierce.

After almost a year of investigation, a federal grand jury last week indicted Dr. Mann with 3 charges in relation to the bombing. Included is a charge of “using a weapon of mass destruction against a person or property.” If convicted, he could be sentenced to life in prison. His wife is also facing charges of lying to investigators and obstruction of justice.

Tags: Arkansas, Board, Federal, Narcotics, Weapons