Suspended Oakland Park doctor Bach McComb was exonerated Thursday on drug trafficking charges in Sarasota, but was arrested for dealing in toxin injections in South Florida.

A Sarasota circuit judge, citing a lack of evidence, dismissed a 2002 case accusing McComb of profiting by selling large amounts of narcotic painkillers to patients, including two who died of overdoses.

But any joy in winning that case was dashed in Bayonne, N.J. Hours after he got out of the hospital where he was treated for botulism poisoning, U.S. marshals arrested McComb while he recuperated at his mother’s home. They brought him to U.S. magistrate court to hear 47 counts stemming from a federal investigation into his use of unapproved anti-wrinkle shots.

McComb, 47, posted $200,000 bond and must return to Florida within about a week to start the case here, said Michael Schroeder, a spokesman for the marshal’s office in Newark.

“He’s pretty weak,” said David Bogenschutz, McComb’s Fort Lauderdale attorney. “He will come home and face the federal charges here.”

McComb, who ran Advanced Integrated Medical Center in Oakland Park, was charged last week with mail fraud, wire fraud, conspiracy and distributing unapproved drugs. Federal agents say he helped promote unapproved botulinum type A toxin injections that an Arizona operation was peddling to doctors across the country.

The toxin from Arizona was uncovered by state and federal agents investigating the November botulism poisoning of McComb and three others from wrinkle shots he gave them. The shots that paralyzed the four later proved to be a concentrated toxin McComb bought from a California lab but mistakenly thought was regular strength.

McComb had recovered enough to leave the hospital less than a day before his arrest, Bogenschutz said. Palm Beach Gardens chiropractor Eric Kaplan was recently released from an Atlanta rehabilitation center where his wife, Bonnie, remains. McComb’s girlfriend, Alma “AJ” Hall, 34, is still paralyzed in Bayonne.

McComb and the Arizona distributors, Chad Livdahl and Zahra Karim, face maximum sentences of up to 900 years on the federal charges.

The former doctor avoided jail in a case that stemmed from a two-year investigation by Sarasota County detectives. Police arrested McComb in his clinic, accusing him of profiting from prescribing excessive amounts of oxycodone, methadone and other pain drugs to his patients.

One of his patients, waiter Jonathan Vernon, was found dead on his couch, his mouth still holding three raspberry-flavored lozenges of the painkiller fentanyl. Two of McComb’s patients in Broward County and one in Palm Beach County also died of overdoses, but were not part of the criminal case.

McComb pleaded not guilty, saying he was helping patients with severe pain. His Sarasota attorney said the acquittal was not a surprise.

“Each medical expert in this case found that there was no evidence of any criminal conduct,” said attorney Bertram V. “Dan” Dannheisser III.

Dannheiser said he hasn’t spoken with McComb.

“We were disappointed,” prosecutor Peter Lombardo said. “We wanted the jury to decide whether Dr. McComb had criminal intent or not.”

He said his office has not decided whether to appeal.

Bob LaMendola can be reached at or 954-356-4526.