Toronto

Barrie doctor faces 68 drug-related charges in fentanyl bust

Police say a former emergency room physician at Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre in Barrie, Ont., has been re-arrested and now faces 68 drug-related charges.

Darryl Gebien allegedly forged prescriptions for the potent pain killer

Fentanyl abuse has been on the rise in Canada recently. (The Canadian Press)

Police say a former emergency room physician at Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre in Barrie, Ont., has been re-arrested and now faces 68 drug-related charges.

Darryl Gebien, 44, was charged last November with three counts of uttering a forged document after police alleged three prescriptions to obtain the drug fentanyl were forged.

Police say Gebien was re-arrested on Monday and charged with an additional 65 criminal code counts related to forging prescriptions and trafficking in fentanyl.

Investigators allege about 515 patches of the potent painkiller were fraudulently issued between June 2014 and November 2014.

Police say they also have arrested and charged a 31-year-old woman and 22-year-old man, both from Barrie, who are known to Gebien but are not linked to the hospital.

The woman faces 27 charges and the man is charged with 39 counts.