Police

Troyan sentenced to 5 years in prison for prescription drug scheme

The Riverhead physician assistant who pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute oxycodone has been sentenced to five years in a federal prison. 

Michael Troyan, 38, was sentenced at a court appearance in U.S. District Court Friday, where a judge and prosecutors revealed for the first time the identity of a third co-defendant charged in the investigation.

“This is one of the more serious physician cases we’ve prosecuted on Long Island,” said assistant U.S. attorney Allen Bode.

In addition to his five-year prison sentence, Mr. Troyan will also be monitored for three years after his release and will pay a roughly $710,000 forfeiture to account for the money he made in the scheme. Mr. Bode called the forfeiture amount a “very conservative estimate” of how much Mr. Troyan made in the drug ring.

Mr. Bode said Mr. Troyan was “at the center of the scheme even if he wasn’t the one selling on the streets.”

In a statement he read to federal Judge Denis Hurley, Mr. Troyan — who said he has was involved in the four-year scheme to support a prescription pill habit — accepted responsibility for his crimes and apologized. He said he’s been sober since his arrest and has begun to turn his life around.

“I’m willing to do anything to make amends,” Mr. Troyan said as about a dozen of his supporters watched on in the courtroom. “My life was ripped apart by addiction. That can happen to anyone.”

An owner and physician assistant at East End Urgent and Primary Care in Riverhead, Mr. Troyan admitted at his change of plea hearing in June to running a scheme from November 2011 through October 2015 in which he illegally distributed thousands of prescription narcotic pills.

Prosecutors said Mr. Troyan worked with approximately 20 others to whom he prescribed more than 70,000 oxycodone pills they resold on the streets before splitting cash profits with him.

Former Southampton Town Councilman Bradley Bender is currently serving a two year prison sentence after being linked to the case by prosecutors.

During a 90-minute hearing before the sentencing, Judge Hurley questioned how much Mr. Troyan had made in the scheme and what his role was, saying that in a written statement Mr. Troyan has previously claimed he made just $25,000 from the scheme.

Mr. Troyan’s attorney, Mark Musachio of Deer Park, had asked for his client to be sentenced to monitoring at his home instead of prison time. Mr. Musachio argued that sending Mr. Troyan to prison would set back the progress he has made with his addiction to drugs.

A U.S. Probation Department recommendation stated Mr. Troyan should receive a lesser sentence to match the one of Mr. Bender, but Judge Hurley sided with the prosecution, which alleged that Mr. Troyan had a larger role in the drug scheme.

Several friends, colleagues and family members also sent messages to Judge Hurley testifying on behalf of Mr. Troyan’s character and his defense attorney said Mr. Troyan’s 8-year-old daughter was dependent on him.

Judge Hurley conceded that a prison sentence might  “wreck havoc on the emotional status of the child” but said Mr. Troyan’s punishment must match the severity of the crime, which he described as having “great magnitude.”

“Incarceration can reverse the progress he has made. I accept that,” Judge Hurley said. “But of course I go back to where we started. The sentence is not meant to help the defendant but to hurt the defendant. [This is] just punishment under the totality of circumstances.”

Judge Hurley also denied a request to have Mr. Troyan enter an early intervention drug program. The judge said the program was designed for individuals with longer drug histories, lesser means to pay for treatment and prior convictions. Judge Hurley noted that Mr. Troyan ran several successful business, including a restaurant, and has a large support system. He also pointed to Mr. Troyan’s own testimony that he has been sober for more than a year.

Mr. Troyan, who is currently free on bail, must surrender to authorities on April 20. He will be housed in a Metropolitan-area prison so he can see his family, Judge Hurley said.

Mr. Troyan left the courthouse surrounded by supporters holding umbrellas to shield him from photographs and questioning after the sentencing. Mr. Musachio declined to comment to a reporter.

During the court appearance, the judge and prosecutors identified 37-year-old Hampton Bays landscaper Andrzej Pyclik as another major part of the scheme.

Mr. Pyclik, who owns Hamptons View Landscaping in Hampton Bays according to an online business profile, participated in the drug ring by distributing tens of thousands of pills on the streets, Mr. Bode said.

Mr. Bode said that after law enforcement approached Mr. Pyclic,  he agreed to cooperate and twice captured Mr. Troyan on video receiving cash after the pills had been sold on the street.

Federal court records show Mr. Pyclik is currently facing one count of conspiracy to distribute oxycodone, the same charge Mr. Troyan pleaded guilty to in June. Mr. Pyclik’s court-appointed attorney Randi Chavis did not return multiple phone calls seeking comment about her client’s case this week.

Mr. Bode said about 20 people were involved in the drug ring in total, with Mr. Pyclik, Mr. Bender and Mr. Troyan being being prosecuted. The others played much lesser roles, Mr. Bode said.

In pre-sentencing documents, Mr. Troyan had alleged he was influenced by Mr. Pyclik to participate in the scheme, Mr. Bode said. But because Mr. Troyan had the ability to write prescriptions, the prosecutors have viewed him as the center of the scheme.

Mr. Bode did not make himself available for questioning outside of the courtroom.

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