Stolen Drug Case At Swedish Hospital Now In The Hands Of The Feds
ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (CBS4) - CBS4 has learned federal investigators have taken over the Swedish Medical Center case of stolen drugs.
Thousands of people have been told they need to be tested for the HIV virus and hepatitis B and C after needles may have been switched.
Englewood police spokesman Sgt. Bruce Cousineau told CBS4 Investigator Rick Sallinger that his department is no longer involved in the investigation. He says it was turned over on Wednesday to the Food and Drug Administration with the Drug Enforcement Administration assisting.
It was Jan. 22 when a syringe labeled fentanyl was believed to be removed from a workspace and replaced with another syringe. Surgical technician Rocky Allen was given a uranalysis and tested positive for both fentanyl and marijuana. The state Division of Professions and Occupations had Allen's license summarily suspended.
Patients who had surgery done at Swedish were notified to be tested to see if they had been affected by contaminated needles. So far there is no word that anyone had.
The case is reminiscent of the case of Kristen Parker who was a surgical technician at Rose Medical Center who infected at least 18 hospital patients with hepatitis C in 2008 and 2009. She was convicted of stealing the liquid painkiller fentanyl, leaving behind her dirty syringes that were then used on patients.
There was also the case of a Boulder nurse Ashton Daigle. He was also convicted of stealing pain killers and replacing them with saline solution.
Allen has not been charged, but there could be further developments soon.
