A pharmacy technician employed at a pharmacy in Lewiston, Idaho began stealing prescription controlled substances from the workplace in August 2017, according to court records. Over the following eleven months the technician took almost 60,000 pills, including over 45,000 hydrocodone pills, 1,880 oxycodone pills and 1,600 lorazepam pills. Many of the pills were passed to other people who then sold them in the area.
The pharmacy worked closely with the Bureau of Indian Affairs Drug Division, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Lewiston Police Department and other agencies to identify the technician and stop the thefts. The technician was arrested, and the diversion ended at that point.
The technician was convicted of conspiracy to distribute controlled substances. On April 9, 2019 the Chief U.S. District Judge for Idaho imposed a sentence of 54 months in federal prison followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered restitution of over $30,000 to the pharmacy.
The DEA Special Agent in Charge said the agency would respond aggressively to those profiting from the opioid crisis. The release does not describe what internal controls the pharmacy changed after the case.