Fourteen people, including the owners of a Massachusetts pharmacy, have been arrested and charged in connection with a deadly 2012 fungal meningitis outbreak, federal prosecutors said on Wednesday.
Those arrested include Barry Cadden and Gregory Conigliaro, owners of the New England Compounding Center in Framingham Massachusetts, said a spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney's office of the District of Massachusetts.
The charges include racketeering in connection with deaths in seven states, according to a tweet from the U.S. Attorney's office. A news conference on the charges and arrests was scheduled for later on Wednesday morning in Boston.
The outbreak killed 64 people. NECC shut down in October 2012 after authorities linked it to the worst outbreak of fungal meningitis in U.S. history due to drugs it shipped to health providers across the country. The company filed for bankruptcy two months later.
A pharmacist who worked for NECC pleaded not guilty in September to the first criminal charges filed in the case.
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Earlier this month, a trustee overseeing the bankruptcy of the pharmacy filed a plan that would set aside at least $135 million to compensate victims and their families.
