Yahoo Finance Infamous Kansas City pharmacist Robert Courtney subject of 4-part true crime podcast
A podcast that explores true crime stories of “regular people who turn sinister by embracing opportunity” will examine the case of Robert Courtney, the notorious Kansas City pharmacist who watered down cancer drugs for thousands of patients.
Courtney will be the subject of season two of “The Opportunist,” which was set to debut the first of four parts Tuesday.
Courtney was sentenced to 30 years in prison after diluting prescriptions, many of them for cancer treatment, for as many as 4,200 patients.
His crimes made the news again last year when he asked to be released seven years early, along with many other inmates, because of COVID-19 infections in the prison system.
A federal judge denied his request for home confinement after widespread outcry from victims’ families, members of Missouri’s congressional delegation and Gov. Mike Parson.
“It is impossible to express the heartache and devastation brought about by his intentional criminal acts, and he should remain in prison until his sentence is complete,” Parson wrote to then-U.S. Attorney General William Barr.
The “Opportunist” will explore how Courtney carried out fraud for years and became the FBI’s top priority in 2001 before 9/11.
“How did a family man, pharmacist, and well-respected member of his community become a cold, calculating criminal? How did this happen and could it happen again?” says a press release from the podcast’s creator, Kast Media.
The podcast shows “that perhaps the most dangerous person is the one who appears the most normal.”
During an investigation that began in mid-2001, Courtney admitted to diluting 72 different medications over nearly a decade. Most were cancer treatment drugs, but others could have been used to treat AIDS, multiple sclerosis, arthritis and other diseases.
The first season of “The Opportunist” earlier this year told the story of cult leader and internet prophet Sherry Shriner. The Apple podcast reached 1 million downloads in its first 30 days, according to Kast Media.
Season 2 is available for free at apple.com, Audible.com and other podcast sources.
