Indy doctor charged with dealing after fentanyl, oxycodone found in Johnson County home

(WXIN/WTTV) — An Indy-area doctor faces felony drug dealing charges after police say they found large amounts of fentanyl, ketamine, oxycodone and more in his Johnson County home.

David Pennington II, an anesthesiologist at Community Hospital South, was arrested last week by the DEA on multiple counts of possession and dealing in controlled substances. The arrest came after medics were called earlier this year to his Greenwood home for a man having a stroke.

EMS crews were called on March 19 to a house in White River Township after a caller said his father was having a stroke. Upon arrival, first responders found Pennington II unresponsive on the floor of his bedroom.

However, that was not all they found inside.

While some medics worked to load Pennington into an ambulance, others discovered empty glass bottles of prescription drugs riddled throughout the house. These included empty and full bottles of ketamine, oxycodone, fentanyl and more, as well as several syringes.

Pennington’s son told medics that “sometimes his dad brings home the empty bottles from work and forgets about them” being in his scrub pockets before walking out of the hospital. EMS officials noticed these vials throughout the house and said the son kept trying to hide them.

After Pennington was taken to the hospital, the case was referred to narcotics detectives and eventually the DEA.

Investigators soon checked ARCOS, the database that tracks controlled substance orders, and found that Pennington hadn’t placed any recent orders. Furthermore, they concluded that an anesthesiologist would never consistently take home vials of controlled substances by accident.

That same day, a Johnson County judge granted a search warrant for Pennington’s home. Throughout the home’s basement, bathrooms, bedrooms and closets, investigators found:

• Over 10 grams worth of oxycodone pills
• Over 30 vials of ketamine
• Over 85 vials of fentanyl
• 30 empty bottles of prescription pills and vials
• Over 10 grams of medical cannabis flower
• Various cannabis gummies
• Over $11,000 in cash
• Various rifles, handguns, magazines and ammo

While some of the prescriptions found were in Pennington’s name, others were in his friends’ names and some were in containers without labels. Police also found over 30 other prescription drugs, including:

Investigators spoke with one man whom Pennington allegedly used to fill his many prescriptions.

The man said Pennington claimed a doctor couldn’t fill their own prescription, so he needed a friend to fill it instead. The friend said he went along with the ruse and gave Pennington the drugs he got from the pharmacy, but did confront him at one point about being an addict.

After months of investigation by local police, prosecutors and Indianapolis DEA agents, Pennington was booked last Wednesday into Johnson County Jail on the following charges:

• Dealing in a Controlled Substance by a Practitioner – Level 4 Felony
• Possession of a Narcotic Drug (Between 10-28 grams) – Level 4 Felony
• Obtaining a Controlled Substance by Fraud/Deceit – Level 6 Felony
• Possession of a Narcotic Drug (Less than 5 grams) – Level 6 Felony
  • 2 counts
• Possession of a Controlled Substance (Schedule I, II, III or IV) – Class A Misdemeanor

Pennington later bailed out of jail on a $3,500 cash bond.

Online court records show Pennington waived his right to an initial hearing that was set for Monday. A pretrial conference is now scheduled for Nov. 3, 2025, in Johnson Circuit Court. A jury trial before Judge Andrew Roesener is expected to begin on December 16, 2025.

To read a full copy of the charging documents against Pennington, including a full list of the drugs found in his home, click here.