U.S. Supreme Court Won’t Hear Fen-Phen Plaintifs’ Lawyer Appeal

The U.S. Supreme Court won’t hear the appeal of a Vicksburg lawyer convicted of swindling a pharmaceutical company out of millions over the diet drug Fen-Phen.

Robert Arledge was convicted in 2007 and sentenced to six years for his role in the scheme, which netted more than $6 million from the drug company Wyeth.

Fen-Phen was a prescription diet drug pulled from the market in 1997 after research revealed it could cause heart problems.

Federal prosecutors say Arledge knowingly allowed clients to make claims of about $250,000 each, even though they had no legitimate health problems caused by the drug.

A federal appeals court upheld the conviction in December. The Supreme Court on Monday without comment refused to hear Arledge’s appeal.