Records obtained by the Globe also showed that some officials of the state pharmacy board learned in 2006 that the leader of an Illinois company chosen to monitor the pharmacy had been convicted of fraud; Cadden's attorney says client has been "anguished my client since the terrible news broke about the tragic deaths and illnesses that have been imputed to the drug compounded at NECC.

By Chelsea Conaboy

 |  GLOBE STAFF   

  NOVEMBER 14, 2012

Barry Cadden, owner of the Framingham pharmacy whose drugs have been linked to hundreds of fungal meningitis cases and at least 32 deaths, invoked his Fifth Amendment rights and declined to answer questions Wednesday during a congressional hearing in Washington on the outbreak.

Cadden walked into the hearing room accompanied by three other men, including two attorneys. After being sworn in, he refused to respond to questions. He read from an index card four times in response to questions:

“Mr. Chairman, on the advice of counsel, I respectfully decline to answer [because] of my constitutional rights and privileges, including the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution.’’

Cadden, who has not made any public comments since the outbreak began and the New England Compounding Center was shuttered last month, was subpoenaed to testify before the Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee of the US House Committee on Energy and Commerce. Lawmakers said they wanted to question him and public health officials about whether the outbreak could have been prevented.

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