Police link psychiatrist to oxycodone drug ring

A psychiatrist from Orange County is being linked to the death of a man from Yonkers. Daren Gajdusek, 31, was an elementary school teacher who moonlighted at a bar to help pay off his student loans.

News 12 Staff

Oct 6, 2015, 6:35 AM

Updated 3,355 days ago

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A psychiatrist from Orange County is being linked to the death of a man from Yonkers.
Daren Gajdusek, 31, was an elementary school teacher who moonlighted at a bar to help pay off his student loans. In March, his body was found on his bed at his Yonkers home, where police also recovered an empty pill bottle.
The medical examiner said that Gajdusek died after swallowing a deadly dose of oxycodone and Xanax. Authorities said the drugs were distributed to him by a man working for a psychiatrist in Orange County.
Last week, authorities arrested Dr. Alfred Ramirez and James Cooney. The duo is accused of selling more than 10,000 oxycodone pills. They allegedly operated out of Ramirez's offices in Orange and Dutchess counties.
According to the criminal complaint, Cooney and Gajdusek exchanged text messages three days before Gajdusek died.
Authorities say Ramirez wrote unnecessary prescriptions -- charging hundreds of dollars -- over the past four years. He and Cooney could face up to 20 years in prison, if convicted.