Hoboken, NJ doctor among two charged in cocaine, MDMA operation

HOBOKEN — A Hoboken University Medical Center doctor is charged with possession of cocaine and ecstasy, with an alleged associate charged with distribution of some of the cocaine, as the result of an undercover investigation over the last two months.

Elizabeth Johnson, 38, of Hoboken, was arrested Friday along with Serge Corporan, 31, also of Hoboken, according to a release Tuesday from the Hudson County Prosecutor's Office.

In the course of the investigation, prosecutors said, Corporan sold more than 150 grams of cocaine to an undercover officer over several dates in February and March. He was found to be in possession of an additional 30 grams of cocaine at the time of his and Johnson's arrests by members of the HCPO Narcotics Task Force, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the Hoboken Police Department.

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A search warrant executed at the Hoboken residence shared by Johnson and Corporan subsequently yielded 17 more grams of cocaine, more than 60 ecstasy (MDMA) pills, and drug paraphernalia. The prosecutor's office said the value of the drugs recovered was more than $15,000.

Corporan was charged with one count of first-degree and four counts of second-degree distribution of cocaine; second-degree possession of cocaine with the intent to distribute, and possession of both cocaine (five counts) and MDMA with intent to distribute within 500 feet of public property; third-degree possession of MDMA and possession of both drugs with intent to distribute within 1,000 feet of a school; and fourth-degree possession of drug paraphernalia with intent to distribute.

He was booked at the Hudson County Correctional Facility and released following an initial court appearance on Saturday.

Johnson was charged with second-degree possession of cocaine with intent to distribute, and possession of cocaine and MDMA with intent to distribute within 500 feet of public property; third-degree possession of MDMA with intent to distribute, and possession of both drugs with intent to distribute within 1,000 feet of a school; and fourth-degree possession of drug paraphernalia with intent to distribute.

She was released on a summons and is scheduled to make her first court appearance on April 1.

Johnson's LinkedIn profile identifies her as having worked at Hoboken University Medical Center as an Emergency Medicine Physician since August 2018. She is still searchable on the website of CarePoint Health, the hospital's parent company.

Johnson's background, according to a personal website, includes a previous post as clinical director of the opioid overdose prevention program at Lincoln Medical and Mental Health Center in the Bronx, New York.

Patrick Lavery is a reporter and anchor for New Jersey 101.5. You can reach him at patrick.lavery@townsquaremedia.com

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