Prescription for Evil: The Most Horrific Murder for Profit Case in American History by James Kirkpatrick Davis
The Most Horrific Murder for Profit Case in American History
Prescription For Evil details the FBI’s highest priority case before the 9/11 attacks
Kansas City, MO: This was the most hideous crime imaginable. On May 27, 2001, a nurse in Kansas City oncologist Dr. Hunter-Hick’s office sent a five c.c. sample of Taxol chemotherapy medicine to the National Medical Services Laboratory. On June 12, 2001, the tested lab results arrived back. The Taxol sample from the lab was an absolute bombshell. It had approximately one third of the amount of Taxol the doctor had ordered. Diluted medication could result in serious, possibly fatal results for seriously ill cancer patients. Kansas City, MO, pharmacist Robert Ray Courtney had been diluting these chemotherapy medications anywhere from 20% to 100%, and pocketing the difference in cost as his profits.
As far as anyone could tell, this was the first time in American history a pharmacist had diluted drugs for profit—particularly such important medications as these. The human toll was enormous, with over 4,200 patients affected and at least 40 deaths resulting at the time of the FBI investigation 22 years ago. Undoubtedly other lives were cut short by Courtney’s actions in the last two decades.
Chemotherapy medications can only be safely given over one course in the lifetime of the patient, in very specific amounts. Since Courtney kept no records of his dilutions, there is no way to know how much each patient received, and no safe way to make up the difference. These patients must live out their lives knowing that they will never have a chance to receive the correct amount of these life-saving medications. How many lives were ultimately cut short is anyone’s guess.
The FBI moved quickly into action. In September 2001, the Bureau opened a new case file: Major Case #183—Operation: Diluted Trust, to be overseen by FBI Director, Robert S. Muller III. This case immediately became the FBI’s single highest priority case in the nation. Eleven days later, the FBI’s attention was pulled away from the Courtney case to focus on the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
At the time, Courtney was one of only a few compounding pharmacists who worked with chemotherapy drugs. The FBI soon discovered that Courtney had been diluting these drugs for years, and the profits had made him immensely wealthy, especially in comparison to his pharmacist peers. This was the worst murder for profit case the FBI had ever seen, and probably the first case of its kind in American history.
Prescription for Evil (originally published under the title, Operation: Diluted Trust from Genius Book Publishing) goes over the case in meticulous detail, detailing not only the facts of the case but the trial of Robert Ray Courtney and the stories of a handful of those affected by Courtney’s monstrous apathy.
About the Author
Award-winning journalist James Kirkpatrick Davis is an independent scholar and author of seven books researching and documenting criminal/FBI investigations. He lives in Lee’s Summit, MO, not far from where Robert Ray Courtney was committing his crimes.
About Genius Book Publishing
Genius Book Publishing is a Milwaukee, Wisconsin-based publisher focused on true crime, fiction, and music-related books. Established in 2011, Genius Book Publishing has published authors such as Dr. Al Carlisle, The Rock And Roll Detective® Jim Berkenstadt, Dr. Don Redden (FBI Ret), Dr. Mark Hewitt, Sheriff’s Capt. Dean T. Olson (Ret), Police Chief David Dean (Ret), journalist James Kirkpatrick Davis, Detective Steve Rush (Ret), journalist Monique Patterson, and others. Our books and other information can be found at https://geniusbookpublishing.com
