Diversion Case Studies

Florida Pharmacist Sentenced to Over 7 Years in Prison for Massive Illegal Oxycodone Distribution Conspiracy

Margate and Pembroke Pines, Florida

A Florida pharmacist and pharmacy owner was sentenced on Oct. 29, 2026 to 90 months in prison after a jury convicted her of conspiracy and five counts of illegal drug distribution. She dispensed at least 335,351 oxycodone 30mg pills through two pharmacies, charging cash at about 10 times the typical cost.

Emergency Department Physician Pleads Guilty to 19 Counts of Illegally Prescribing Opioids and Stimulants

Pensacola, Florida

A Florida-licensed physician who contracted at hospital emergency departments and other medical offices in and around Escambia County pleaded guilty on Oct. 21, 2026 to 19 counts of unlawfully distributing or dispensing controlled substances. Between 2020 and 2025 the physician prescribed at least 25,500 pills, over 22,000 opioids (mainly oxycodone and hydrocodone) and over 3,000 stimulants (mainly Adderall), with no examination, no review of prior records, no determination of legitimate medical purpose and no record of the encounters. Sentencing is set for Jan. 14, 2027, with up to 20 years' imprisonment per count.

Pennsylvania Psychiatrist's DEA Registration Revoked After Falsified Records and Prescriptions to an Undercover Patient

Easton, Pennsylvania

A Pennsylvania psychiatrist's DEA registration was revoked by a final order published Oct. 19, 2026, after the Agency found he prescribed a Schedule II stimulant to an undercover law enforcement officer on three occasions in 2021 without an adequate evaluation or any re-evaluation, and falsified the patient's medical record. The falsification included copying her signature onto forms and documenting examinations, tests and visits that did not occur. The revocation takes effect Nov. 18, 2026.

CVS Agrees to Pay $315M Over Unlawfully Filled Opioid Prescriptions and False Claims

Rhode Island

CVS Pharmacy Inc., a Rhode Island-based pharmacy chain, and its related corporate entities agreed to pay $315 million to resolve allegations that, from October 17, 2013 through December 2, 2025, they filled opioid and other controlled-substance prescriptions in violation of the Controlled Substances Act and then sought payment for many of them from Medicare and other federal healthcare programs in violation of the False Claims Act. The government alleged excessive opioid quantities, early refills, "trinity" combinations of an opioid, a benzodiazepine and a muscle relaxant, and prescriptions from "pill mill" prescribers, filled despite clear red flags. The complaint also alleged that corporate performance metrics, incentive compensation and staffing policies put profits ahead of patient safety, and that CVS policies prevented pharmacists from warning one another about problematic prescribers. The settlement is an allegation-only resolution; the release states no determination of liability.

Doctor Convicted of Distributing Over 2 Million Stimulant Pills on the Done ADHD Platform

Western District of Michigan

A federal jury in the Western District of Michigan convicted Jonathan Decker, 46, of Rockford, Michigan, of distributing over 2 million pills of Adderall and other stimulants over the Done ADHD platform. Decker prescribed methamphetamine and amphetamines to patients without examining them, including patients with substance use disorders and significant mental health diagnoses whose symptoms the drugs exacerbated, and was paid more than $1 million for his prescriptions. He is the 11th defendant convicted in the $100 million Done Global drug distribution and health care fraud scheme. The jury convicted him of conspiracy to distribute controlled substances and six counts of distribution of controlled substances; no sentencing date has been set and he faces a maximum of 140 years in prison.

Fitchburg Nursing Facility LPN Replaced Hospice Patients' Oxycodone with Lookalike Pills

Fitchburg, MA

According to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Massachusetts, a 41-year-old licensed practical nurse pleaded guilty in federal court in Worcester to one count of tampering with a consumer product. From about September 2024 through about February 2025, the LPN diverted oxycodone from patients in the skilled nursing and dementia care units of a Fitchburg healthcare facility, consuming "as needed" doses and replacing 5 mg pills with loratadine and a memory care patient's 10 mg pills with levothyroxine. Sentencing is set for January 7, 2027.

Fort Walton Beach Gastroenterologist Pays $300,000 to Settle Controlled Substances Act Prescribing Allegations

Fort Walton Beach, Florida

A gastroenterologist practicing in Fort Walton Beach, Florida agreed to pay $300,000 to resolve allegations that he violated the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) by unlawfully prescribing opioids and other controlled substances. The government alleged that from June 15, 2023 through March 7, 2025, he unlawfully prescribed at least 127 controlled-substance prescriptions in Florida — including oxycodone-acetaminophen, hydrocodone-acetaminophen, lorazepam, alprazolam, clonazepam, and tramadol — and did not maintain any patient records. He voluntarily surrendered his DEA registration on April 22, 2026. As part of the settlement, announced September 21, 2026, he agreed not to reapply for a DEA registration for Schedule II or IIN controlled substances, to document completion of continuing medical education in prescribing and recordkeeping, and to additional DEA monitoring. This civil settlement is not an admission of liability.

Pittsfield Pharmacist Pleads Guilty to Diverting Adderall from Pharmacy Chain

Pittsfield, Massachusetts

A 30-year-old licensed pharmacist at a national pharmacy chain pleaded guilty in federal court in Boston on September 17, 2026 to five counts of acquiring a controlled substance by fraud, deception and subterfuge, admitting he diverted dextroamphetamine (generic Adderall) and Adderall that were intended for the pharmacy's customers for his own use on five occasions in 2024. He was charged in July 2026 and is scheduled to be sentenced on December 15, 2026.

Denver Hospital Case Coordinator Sentenced to 18 Months for Tampering With Patients' Oxycodone Prescriptions

Denver, Colorado

Shelbi Wolken, 35, of Wheat Ridge, Colorado, worked as a case management coordinator with access to Intermountain Health patients' medical records and personal information. She used that access to pick up patients' oxycodone prescriptions at the in-house pharmacy of Saint Joseph's Hospital in Denver, replacing the stolen pills with over-the-counter medications, and investigators found she had picked up roughly 139 prescriptions for about 127 patients between December 2023 and July 2024. Several affected patients reported significant pain and post-surgical complications after unknowingly taking the substituted pills. Wolken pleaded guilty to tampering with a consumer product and was sentenced on September 17, 2026, to 18 months in federal prison.

Edmond hospital employee charged with stealing fentanyl waste from OU Health

Edmond, OK

An Edmond hospital employee was charged with larceny of controlled drugs after police said he stole fentanyl waste from OU Health, according to court documents. A hospital report flagged more than 15 transactions involving fentanyl waste, including fifteen 'override cancel' or 'remove cancel' entries for fentanyl 100 mcg/2ml. Surveillance video was reported to show the employee blocking the camera's view, removing vials from a drawer and pocketing them, and using a syringe and needle to take leftover waste from drip bags for personal use. Police said he later admitted to the theft, which totaled about $430 in fentanyl waste.

Pediatric intensive care nurse sentenced after guilty plea to obtaining morphine by fraud

Baltimore, MD

A registered nurse at the University of Maryland Medical Center Pediatric Intensive Care Unit in Baltimore was convicted and sentenced for diverting morphine. The nurse was assigned to a 10-year-old patient recovering from open heart surgery and documented an 8:30 a.m. intravenous morphine dose but did not document a later dose she told another nurse she had given. The nurse was observed with bruising and bleeding consistent with intravenous drug use and later refused a drug screening; she pleaded guilty to obtaining morphine by fraud and received a suspended sentence with probation and healthcare-program exclusion.

Virginia Physician's DEA Registration Revoked After Concurrent Opioid-Benzodiazepine Prescribing Killed Two Patients

Great Falls, Virginia

A Virginia physician's DEA registration was revoked by final agency order published August 28, 2026, after she failed to answer a December 2025 order to show cause and the allegations were deemed admitted — including that she issued concurrent prescriptions for oxycodone/acetaminophen and diazepam to two patients in March and April 2025, both of whom died of acute intoxication caused by the combination she prescribed. DEA also found she never documented the "extenuating circumstances" Virginia requires for co-prescribing an opioid and a benzodiazepine, never documented risk counseling or lowest-effective-dose prescribing, and never prescribed an opioid reversal agent. The revocation took effect September 28, 2026.

Former VA Medical Center Nurse Indicted for Stealing Hydromorphone

Minneapolis, Minnesota

A former nurse who worked at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Minneapolis was indicted on August 21, 2026, on one count of obtaining controlled substances by misrepresentation, fraud, forgery, deception, or subterfuge — allegedly wrongfully obtaining hydromorphone over roughly 13 months.

Massachusetts Pharmacist Pleads Guilty to Diverting Controlled Substances from New Hampshire Pharmacy

Lancaster, New Hampshire

A 60-year-old Massachusetts pharmacist who worked per diem at a North Country Healthcare pharmacy in Lancaster, New Hampshire, pleaded guilty on August 17, 2026 to diverting controlled prescription drugs — including stimulants and benzodiazepines — for personal use while she was the only pharmacist on duty during August 2024.

Celina Pharmacy Owner and Two Pharmacies Banned from Handling Controlled Substances

Celina, Tennessee

A 65-year-old pharmacy owner and two Celina, Tennessee pharmacies he majority-owned agreed to pay $450,000 and accept a permanent ban on handling controlled substances under a consent judgment resolving civil Controlled Substances Act and False Claims Act claims.

Registered nurse accused of diverting morphine from OrthoNebraska surgical unit

Omaha, NE

A registered nurse in the surgical unit at OrthoNebraska in Omaha was accused of stealing 20 to 50 vials of morphine from work. Authorities alleged the nurse entered fictitious orders in patient charts to divert morphine, and the nurse admitted to accessing an automated medication dispensing machine, sometimes using co-workers' login information. An audit showed more than 600 vials of morphine were diverted or stolen from Jan. 1, 2025, to Dec. 1, 2025. The nurse was booked on seven felony counts of intentionally violating a narcotic drug law and admitted to diverting morphine, according to the report.

Contract Nurse Anesthetist Sentenced for Burglarizing Pain Clinic's Controlled Substances

Louisville, Kentucky

Matthew Ryan Elkins, 41, of Crestwood, Kentucky, a contract nurse anesthetist for a Louisville pain treatment center, was caught by police burglarizing the center and removing controlled substances intended for patients. The center's patients typically had implanted intrathecal pain pumps for severe conditions such as cancer, spinal injuries or failed back surgeries, refilled periodically with pre-filled, patient-labeled syringes of pain medication. Elkins was convicted of tampering with consumer products, acquiring a controlled substance by misrepresentation and fraud, and burglary involving controlled substances, and was sentenced on July 20, 2026, to six years and five months in federal prison; he forfeited his Kentucky nursing licenses.

West Virginia Hospital System Settles Federal Controlled-Substance Recordkeeping Case

Morgantown, West Virginia

West Virginia University Health System agreed to pay $4,177,139 and enter a three-year compliance agreement with the DEA to resolve civil allegations that its facilities violated the Controlled Substances Act over a seven-year span, including failing to notify the DEA of thefts or significant losses of controlled substances and failing to maintain accurate inventory records.

Missouri nurse forged oxycodone and Percocet prescriptions using a coworker's pad and DEA number

A registered nurse from Kansas City, Missouri, who worked at a hospital in Kansas City, Kansas, pleaded guilty in federal court in the District of Kansas to one count of possession of a controlled substance by deception and subterfuge. According to court documents, she used her position to obtain a nurse practitioner's prescription pad and DEA registration number and, beginning in March 2024, wrote forged prescriptions for Percocet and oxycodone in relatives' names, filling them at pharmacies in Kansas and Missouri. She later admitted to DEA investigators that she wrote 13 fraudulent prescriptions. She was sentenced to three years of probation and a $5,000 fine, lost her nursing license, and received a lifetime ban from working at any hospital that receives federal funding.

LeMars Nurse Sentenced for Diverting Fentanyl and Hydromorphone, Falsifying Patient Records

LeMars, Iowa

Chad Hoppe, 49, of LeMars, Iowa, an Iowa-licensed registered nurse and shift supervisor, diverted large quantities of fentanyl and hydromorphone meant for patients between May 2024 and March 2025, using them personally and falsifying or omitting the required charting. He also entered false narcotics orders claiming physician authorization he did not have; in one month while working as a supervisor, he pulled over 9,000 mcg of fentanyl compared to 700 mcg by the next-highest staff member at the same facility. Hoppe pleaded guilty on March 9, 2026, to false statements relating to health care matters and aggravated identity theft, and was sentenced on July 9, 2026, to 30 months in prison.

Pottstown Physician Pays $100,000 to Settle Controlled Substances Act Violations

Pottstown, Pennsylvania

Xiang Yuan, M.D., a physician practicing in Pottstown, Pennsylvania, agreed to pay $100,000 to resolve allegations that he violated the Controlled Substances Act by failing to keep complete and accurate records of controlled substances, writing prescriptions "for stock" rather than for identified patients, and improperly moving controlled substances from his registered practice address. As part of the settlement, announced July 2, 2026, Yuan entered a three-year Memorandum of Agreement with DEA imposing compliance obligations stricter than the underlying regulations.

Pharmacy intern stole phentermine from Sam's Club Pharmacy

Boardman, OH

A pharmacy intern was found to have stolen a stock bottle of phentermine 37.5 mg tablets, a Schedule IV controlled substance, from the employer pharmacy. The intern admitted taking the bottle home and denied being addicted to dangerous drugs. The Board removed an earlier summary suspension and indefinitely suspended the pharmacy intern license, with conditions for possible reinstatement.

Yellow Springs pharmacy oxycodone/acetaminophen substitution found during inventory

Yellow Springs, OH

During an incoming inventory, a responsible person observed the security control seal on two 100-count bottles of oxycodone/acetaminophen 10/325 mg tablets, a Schedule II controlled substance. Two hundred tablets had been removed and replaced with acetaminophen 325 mg tablets. The loss was not reported to the Board. The Board found violations and imposed a $5,000 monetary penalty.

Muncie hospital pharmacy license put on probation after pharmacy manager diverted opioids using unused transaction types

Muncie, IN

The Indiana Board of Pharmacy narrowly approved a disciplinary settlement with a Muncie hospital whose pharmacy policies failed to detect a pharmacy manager's theft of Schedule II narcotics over nearly four years. Investigators said the losses included more than 32,000 milliliters of hydromorphone, more than 3,300 milliliters of methadone solution, more than 4,000 methadone tablets and smaller amounts of morphine, with a hospital-estimated loss above $121,000. The settlement keeps the hospital's pharmacy license and controlled substance registration on probation for at least three years and imposes the maximum $44,000 civil fine along with outside audits, inspections and diversion-prevention training.

Registered nurse charged with unlawfully obtaining oxycodone, hydromorphone and fentanyl at a Horry County hospital

Horry County, SC

A registered nurse working at Grand Strand Medical Center in Horry County was arrested after allegedly unlawfully obtaining medications at the facility, according to arrest warrants obtained from the Department of Public Health. The nurse was charged with three counts of theft of controlled substances and nine counts of violation of drug distribution law. Warrants allege that on some dates between Jan. 10 and April 11 the nurse unlawfully obtained a quantity of oxycodone, hydromorphone and fentanyl, and was also accused of furnishing false material or omitting material from a required document. The warrants state the whereabouts of the medication could not be accounted for, and the nurse was released on a $12,000 bond.