Thanks, I Hate It
A doctor and his wife who appeared on 'Below Deck Mediterranean' and 'Below Deck Sailing Yacht' have pleaded not guilty in a fraudulent prescription drug scheme on Long Island.
Published on December 15, 2023
3 min readA New York couple who appeared on Below Deck Mediterranean has been charged in a prescription drug scheme that involved stealing the identities of cast members on the hit Bravo show.
On. Dec. 14, Dr. Francis Martinis and his wife, Jessica Martinis, both pleaded not guilty to eight felony counts of criminal sale of a controlled substance by a practitioner and falsifying business records. According to the indictment, the pair created fake prescriptions for opiates using the names of Below Deck cast members. They then filled the prescriptions at pharmacies on Long Island.
Francis and Jessica Martinis used ‘Below Deck’ cast identities to fill fake prescriptions, authorities say
Law enforcement officials first started looking into the Martinis in January 2023. That’s when Jessica, 38, attempted to file a fake prescription for oxycodone at a pharmacy on Long Island. The pharmacist found the handwritten prescription suspicious and called the police.
The questionable prescription prompted an investigation by the Suffolk County Police Department, the DEA, and Homeland Security. Investigators discovered that Francis, a 55-year-old urologist, had sent numerous opiate prescriptions to pharmacies in Suffolk County over the past two years. Some of the fake prescriptions were made out to former Below Deck cast members. Jessica would then pick up the drugs at the pharmacy, paying in cash, police say. The prescriptions were not intended for or received by the people whose names were on the prescriptions.
“The DEA is rooted in an ‘all hands-on deck’ approach to save lives from illegal drug misuse and abuse through enforcement, education, and prevention,” said U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent in Charge Frank Tarentino in a statement. “By working with our law enforcement partners and the community, we identified two individuals who brazenly diverted controlled substances intended for medicinal purposes to the illegal drug market.”
The Martinis are due back in court on Jan. 25, 2024.
Francis Martinis appeared on ‘Below Deck Mediterranean’ and ‘Below Deck Sailing Yacht’
The Martinis were guests on Below Deck Mediterranean Season 4, which aired in 2019. They were part of a group that chartered the Sirocco, a luxury yacht. Francis also appeared on Below Deck Sailing Yacht Season 1, when he was part of a rowdy group that aggravated some of the crew. He returned to the show in season 2, when he left a hefty $23,000 tip for a short charter.
Francis was also friends with several Below Deck cast members outside of the show. In a 2019 Instagram post, Captain Sandy Yawn shared a video of herself enjoying dinner with the doctor, who she said had “a heart of gold.” She’s credited him with encouraging her to have doctors take a closer look at her kidneys after a motorcycle accident. That led to the discovery that she had cancer. Below Deck Med’s João Franco also posted about spending time with the Martinis in a 2019 Instagram update. Martinis’ own Instagram features many photos of him with Below Deck stars.
According to Former New York Homeland Security Director Michael Balboni, Francis took advantage of his TV fame in his drug scheme.
“He abused the celebrity position that he had on that ship to take the identities of his crew members — if that is proven — and then use that to buy drugs,” Balboni said, according to NBC New York. “That is a common scheme for a common criminal.”
Showbiz Cheat Sheet reached out to Bravo, which had no comment on the Martinis’ arrest.
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