Crime, like medicine, has its own fee schedule.
New York cardiologist Anthony Moschetto, DO, had one when he conspired to harm a fellow cardiologist he practiced with for 20 years, according to state prosecutors: $5000 to have his former colleague beaten to the point of hospitalization and $20,000 to have him killed.
"He wanted to put him out of business so he could get his business," said Nassau County Assistant District Attorney Anne Donnelly in a news conference earlier this week.
All Dr Moschetto managed to pull off was an unsuccessful attempt on February 25 to burn down the other physician's office in Great Neck, New York, where he once worked, authorities said.
On Tuesday, the 54-year-old Dr Moschetto was charged with multiple crimes in a murder-for-hire scheme in a state court in Nassau County on Long Island. The scheme, said prosecutors, involved the illegal sale of assault rifles and narcotics prescriptions through a third party to pay for the murder of the other physician, as well as the arson. The plot was discovered during an undercover police investigation of oxycodone scripts written by Dr Moschetto, a development that brought in the federal Drug Enforcement Administration.
There were more discoveries: When law-enforcement agents searched Dr Moschetto's sprawling home in Sands Point, New York, in Long Island's North Shore, they found about 100 weapons, many of them hidden in a basement room by a "switch-activated moving bookshelf," according to a news release from the Nassau County District Attorney's office. The arsenal included a grenade, knives, and various rifles with illegal, high-capacity magazines.
"I Need to Take Care of My Patients"
Dr Moschetto joined the targeted cardiologist's practice in 1994, according to archived copies of its website. Dr Moschetto was listed as a practice member on a copy of the website dated as recently as December 17, 2014. The two physicians "have your best interest at heart," the website said.
However, their relationship recently "soured due to a professional dispute," according to prosecutors, and Dr Moschetto moved out. The practice's website now lists only one physician — the other cardiologist — as working there.
Authorities said Dr Moschetto originally contemplated blowing up his ex-colleague's building and tried to buy dynamite through the third party who sold prescription drugs, heroin, and guns on his behalf. The plan changed to arson, however. Dr Moschetto hired two men for the job: one to start a gasoline-fuelled fire and the other to drive a getaway car. The building's sprinkler system put out the fire, however, limiting the damage.
The two men, one described by authorities as homeless, have been charged with arson and other crimes.
After the arson attempt, Dr Moschetto conspired to put a more direct hit on his ex-colleague, according to authorities. In late March, he offered an undercover detective $5000 to assault the other physician, and $20,000 at another point to murder him, making down payments and promising to pay the rest after the deed. Prosecutors said Dr Moschetto vacillated between the two plans and at the time of his arrest on April 14 had settled on a beating.
Thomas Krumpter, acting commissioner of the Nassau County Police Department, called Dr Moschetto a "hidden monster."
"The man skilled at saving lives betrayed his oath and began to lead the life of a common criminal," Krumpter told reporters at a news conference.
Dr Moschetto pleaded not guilty to conspiracy, arson, criminal sale of controlled substances, weapons violations, and other charges on Wednesday and was released on a $2 million bond. The top charge, conspiracy in the second degree, is punishable by up to 25 years in prison.
His lawyer, Randy Zelin, told Medscape Medical News that he is trying to help Dr Moschetto return to practicing medicine while he awaits trial. "He wants to work," said Zelin.
"While he was in a holding cell, he was saying, 'I need to take care of my patients,' " Zelin said. "His patients were flooding his office with calls, making sure he was okay.
"That, more than anything else, speaks to his character."
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Cite this: Physician Charged With Conspiring to Murder Ex-Colleague - Medscape - Apr 17, 2015.
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