Beverly Hills pharmacist Ahmed Osman’s registration cancelled after gave drugs to criminals

An ‘extremely frightened’ pharmacist from Sydney’s south who gave highly-addictive drugs to criminals when they threatened him has been unable to work for six months.

A pharmacist will be unable to work for six months after his registration was cancelled for supplying highly-addictive drugs.

A Beverly Hills pharmacist will be unable to work for six months after his registration was cancelled for supplying highly-addictive drugs when he was threatened by unknown members of organised criminal syndicates.

The Health Care Complaints Commission prosecuted a complaint against pharmacist Ahmed Osman before the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal.

The tribunal found Osman guilty of unsatisfactory professional conduct and professional misconduct after the HCCC alleged between January 2021 and February 2022, Osman who co-owneda Beverly Hills pharmacy, was unable to account for large numbers of drugs including oxycontin, oxycodone and fentanyl.

He also inappropriately supplied these drugs to unknown people knowing they would likely be distributed to members of the general public.

The tribunal found Osman took steps to avoid detection of the supply by not retaining delivery slips for medication, creating false dispensing record, and retrospectively cancelling transactions on the pharmacy’s computerised dispensing system.

Pharmacist Ahmed Osman supplied highly addictive drugs. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Joel Carrett

In its decision handed down early December, the tribunal found the complaints proven and his registration was cancelled for six months.

The tribunal judgment said Osman supplied drugs over two years on 20 occasions with “very significant quantities of prescribed restricted substances’’ and he knew there was “a real risk’’ of people misusing drugs or even suffering overdoses.

“Mr Osman’s conduct was completely antithetical to his professional responsibilities as a pharmacist,’’ the judgment said.

“By allowing vast quantities of drugs, which are tightly regulated by reason of the dangers they pose, to be sent out into the community for unmonitored use by members of the public, Mr Osman has unquestionably, in our view, been guilty of professional misconduct.”

The tribunal heard Osman admitted he was guilty of unsatisfactory professional conduct but said he supplied drugs and took steps to avoid detection under threats of violence to himself and his family.

A large amount of drugs were supplied.

“We accept that Mr Osman was subject to threats of violence against himself and his family by unknown males and we accept that Mr Osman did not report those persons’ threats or demands to police (or others) out of a genuine fear that the threats would be realised if he did so,’’ the judgment said.

“This was undoubtedly an extremely frightening and traumatic experience for Mr Osman.”
The tribunal accepted the pharmacist received no money for the drugs he supplied. It cost him $50,000 and he had no training about how to deal with threats from organised criminal syndicates.

“His conduct may have been motivated by a concern for his safety and the safety of his family, but that was to put his own and his family’s safety ahead of the community’s whose health it was his responsibility as a pharmacist to protect …,” the judgment said.

“As his own counsel conceded, Mr Osman should have reported the matter to police.”

Osman said he was overwhelmed with anxiety and paranoia and the threats also impacted his ability to properly manage the pharmacy daily, particularly during the pandemic.

He said he was “completely remorseful” for his actions and sought psychological treatment.