Diversion Case Studies

Delaware Medical Biller Indicted for Diverting Opioids Using Stolen Provider Identities

Delaware

A federal grand jury in Wilmington indicted Ty Mauldin on December 15, 2025, for using the stolen professional-licensure information of medical providers he worked with to order thousands of opioid pills from wholesale suppliers and prescribe himself opioids — all without those providers' knowledge. Mauldin, a medical biller and credentialer, also falsified his own medical records and posed as a licensed nurse to obtain additional controlled substances and bill insurers.

Lawton pharmacy technician charged after hydrocodone tablets found spilling from clothing

According to the Board of Pharmacy complaint, on October 23, 2025 the pharmacist-in-charge at a Lawton retail pharmacy noticed tablets on the floor beneath a technician who was filling prescriptions and asked whether they were coming from the technician's clothing. The technician reportedly admitted to diverting 30 hydrocodone-acetaminophen tablets and was terminated the same day. The pharmacy's amended DEA loss report later listed 1,538 hydrocodone-acetaminophen tablets and 56 dextroamphetamine-amphetamine tablets missing, and a felony larceny charge was filed in Comanche County District Court in December 2025 that remained pending when the Board complaint was filed.

Nurse Anesthetist Diverted Fentanyl Waste for Months While AI Surveillance Missed It (Erlanger Baroness)

Chattanooga, Tennessee

A nurse anesthetist at Erlanger Baroness, the largest hospital in Chattanooga, admitted diverting unused fentanyl left over after surgeries for months, while the hospital's AI-powered medication monitoring system failed to flag missing drugs and other dispensing and waste documentation inconsistencies, according to a Tennessee Board of Nursing consent order.

Pharmacy technician diverted alprazolam, zolpidem and other controlled substances from a national pharmacy chain in Easton, Maryland, by taking pills from bottles

Easton, MD

The Board found that a pharmacy technician employed by a national pharmacy chain at two stores in Easton, Maryland, diverted multiple controlled substances. The pharmacy's internal investigation stated that the technician admitted stealing Ambien (zolpidem), Soma (carisoprodol), Xanax (alprazolam), diazepam, and Lunesta (eszopiclone) from one store, and surveillance footage showed the technician removing pills from a lab coat pocket and consuming several pills in the back of a store. A DEA Form 106 reported lost or stolen alprazolam, zolpidem, carisoprodol, clonazepam, diazepam, and eszopiclone. The technician pleaded guilty to misdemeanor theft, and the Board revoked the pharmacy technician registration.

Unlicensed Director of Nursing at Cherrydale Post Acute charged with stealing oxycodone from a person

Greenville, SC

A person employed as Director of Nursing at Cherrydale Post Acute in Greenville, SC, was arrested and charged after investigators alleged she stole a quantity of oxycodone, a Schedule II controlled substance, from another person with intent to permanently deprive that person of the medication. The document also alleges she practiced nursing and used the title Director of Nursing without an active license, including on June 20 and June 23, 2025. She was charged with theft of a controlled substance and unlicensed practice, and booked into the Greenville County Detention Center. All defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

Pharmacist diverted phentermine and other prescription drugs using fictitious patient profiles at a Wicomico County pharmacy

Wicomico County, MD

A pharmacist at a pharmacy in Wicomico County, Maryland, admitted creating a fictitious patient profile and using it to fill and purchase prescriptions for herself, including phentermine, cyclobenzaprine, tizanidine, and gabapentin. The Board found that the pharmacist diverted prescription drugs and/or controlled dangerous substances, with four phentermine prescriptions identified as suspicious and purchased using cash and two patient profiles. The pharmacist's license was suspended for at least one year effective April 8, 2025, with a $1,000 fine and a substance use evaluation; in a related criminal case, the pharmacist entered an agreement statement of facts to one count of obtaining a prescription drug by fraud and received probation before judgment and one year of unsupervised probation.

Nevada nurse anesthetist placed on probation for drug diversion

The Nevada State Board of Nursing listed an Agreement for Probation with a certified registered nurse anesthetist among its disciplinary actions for the period of October 16 through December 8, 2025. The cited grounds were unprofessional conduct and diverting supplies, equipment or drugs for personal or unauthorized use. The published list does not describe the drug involved, the practice setting or how the conduct came to light.

Nevada registered nurse surrendered license over controlled-substance use and drug diversion

A registered nurse voluntarily surrendered a Nevada license in lieu of other disciplinary action, according to the Nevada State Board of Nursing's list of actions for October 16 through December 8, 2025. The cited grounds included use of controlled substances and/or alcohol, unprofessional conduct, diverting equipment or drugs for personal or unauthorized use, and departure from customary standards of practice. The published list gives no details about the drug, the setting or how the conduct was identified.

New Hampshire emergency department nurse pleaded guilty after keeping partial opioid doses

A former emergency department nurse at a Keene regional medical center pleaded guilty in Cheshire County Superior Court to obtaining morphine by fraud after investigators found he had taken opioids intended for patients. Prosecutors alleged that between June 2024 and January 2025 he repeatedly administered only partial doses of fentanyl, morphine and hydromorphone and kept the remainder. The court imposed a one-to-four-year state prison sentence, fully suspended on conditions including two years of probation and substance use disorder treatment. The state Board of Nursing suspended his license and he later surrendered it.

Emergency Room Nurse Sentenced for Tampering With Fentanyl Vials at Michigan Hospital

Grosse Pointe Park, Michigan

A registered nurse in the emergency room at Ascension St. John Hospital in Detroit removed fentanyl from vials intended for patients, replaced it with another liquid, and returned the tampered vials to the hospital's locked drug storage system. He also stole fentanyl vials for personal use in a pattern of thefts from May through August 2022. The hospital discovered the tampering and thefts and immediately removed him from his position. He was sentenced in November 2025 to two years in federal prison for tampering with a consumer product.

Michigan Pharmacist Fined Over West Bloomfield Drug Diversion

West Bloomfield, Michigan

A Michigan pharmacist in West Bloomfield was fined after the state licensing bureau's disciplinary action report cited drug diversion and incompetence as the basis for action.

Oklahoma pharmacy technician permit permanently revoked after pharmacy reported 3,762 tablets lost

On June 23, 2025 the Oklahoma State Board of Pharmacy received a DEA-106 form from a pharmacy reporting the theft or loss of 3,762 tablets. After a hearing on November 18, 2025 the Board concluded that clear and convincing evidence established the technician had violated the Oklahoma Pharmacy Act. The Board proposed permanent revocation of the technician's permit and a $2,000 fine, and the Attorney General's office found the proposed action consistent with state policy.

Anchorage Nurse Practitioner Sentenced for Prescribing Opioids Without Medical Purpose

Anchorage, Alaska

An Anchorage jury convicted advanced nurse practitioner Kris Rhodes Kile in May 2025 of 12 felony counts of misconduct involving a controlled substance after evidence showed she prescribed fentanyl, oxycodone, hydrocodone, hydromorphone, and diazepam to six patients between June 2016 and November 2018 with no legitimate medical purpose. On November 14, 2025, an Anchorage Superior Court judge sentenced Kile to three years to serve, finding her prospects for rehabilitation "guarded" and her attitude "steadfastly unrepentant."

Massachusetts Hospice Nurse Indicted for Swapping Dementia Patient's Oxycodone with Household Cleaner

Amesbury, Massachusetts

Lori Robertson, a nurse from Salem, New Hampshire, was indicted by a federal grand jury and arrested in late October 2025 for allegedly removing liquid oxycodone from a non-verbal dementia patient's medication at an Amesbury facility. She allegedly refilled it with a household cleaning chemical.

Hospital lead pharmacy technician diverted Oxycodone by substituting Fludrocortisone during prepackaging for automated dispensing system

At a hospital in Prince George's County, Maryland, a lead pharmacy technician was investigated for diverting Oxycodone. The Board found the technician switched Oxycodone 5 mg tablets with Fludrocortisone 0.1 mg tablets during prepackaging to refill an automated medication dispensing system and entered zero-count refills to hide the swap. The technician admitted at the evidentiary hearing to switching the drugs and personally ingesting the Oxycodone. The Board revoked the technician's registration.

Nurse anesthetist at a Chattanooga hospital admitted diverting leftover fentanyl from surgeries, state consent order says

Chattanooga, TN

According to a Tennessee Board of Nursing consent order, a nurse anesthetist at Erlanger Baroness Hospital in Chattanooga admitted diverting unused fentanyl that would otherwise have been wasted after surgical procedures, starting in March 2025 and increasing to daily use by June. Coworkers reported the nurse appeared impaired while on duty in the surgery center around June 30, 2025; the nurse failed a drug test and was fired. The board placed the license on probation while the nurse attended drug counseling, and the nurse has not been charged with any crime related to the case. The hospital's audit found roughly five instances in which its automated drug-diversion monitoring software did not flag missing drugs, along with dispensing and waste-documentation inconsistencies the system should have flagged.

Agency affiliated counselor alleged to have ingested unprescribed methadone while transporting clients

In November 2025 the Department of Health charged an agency affiliated counselor with unprofessional conduct. In October 2023, the counselor allegedly ingested unprescribed methadone while transporting clients, became unresponsive in a car and required multiple doses of Narcan. The counselor later admitted taking the methadone and was terminated by their employer.

California pharmacist applicant filled hydrocodone prescription issued without a prescriber-patient relationship

The California State Board of Pharmacy filed a Statement of Issues against an applicant for a pharmacist license over conduct in April 2013. The Board alleged the applicant asked a physician to authorize prescriptions for two dangerous drugs and one controlled substance with no prescriber-patient relationship or examination, then filled, picked up and paid for them, and alleged the applicant possessed hydrocodone and marijuana without a prescription. The matter was resolved by stipulated settlement: the license is granted, immediately revoked, the revocation stayed, and the license placed on probation for three years, effective October 15, 2025.

Licensed practical nurse accused of stealing oxycodone from a resident at Simpsonville Post Acute

Simpsonville, SC

In October 2025, a licensed practical nurse at Simpsonville Post Acute in Greenville County, South Carolina, was charged with one count of a controlled substance, first offense. The attorney general's Vulnerable Adults and Medicaid Provider Fraud unit alleged the nurse knowingly and intentionally took a quantity of oxycodone from a resident of the facility. The facility reported the conduct to law enforcement and cooperated with the investigation. The charge is a felony punishable by up to five years in prison, a fine of up to $5,000, or both.

Veterinarian charged with issuing controlled substance prescriptions without documentation and providing medications for non-patient use

Snohomish County, Washington

In October 2025, the Veterinary Board of Governors charged a veterinarian with unprofessional conduct. Between June 2020 and August 2024, the veterinarian allegedly prescribed medications for two animals without establishing valid client relationships or conducting physical examinations, altered medical records and invoices, and issued multiple controlled substance prescriptions without documentation or payment. The veterinarian also allegedly provided these medications for non-patient use and misrepresented the purpose of prescriptions to colleagues.

Yale New Haven Hospital nurse sentenced to federal prison for lorazepam tampering

A former registered nurse at a New Haven hospital was sentenced to 16 months in federal prison for tampering with and stealing lorazepam vials. According to the report, the nurse removed at least one vial from a secure storage location, replaced part of its contents with saline, and returned it. The missing items were found in the nurse's backpack during staff searches conducted as part of a hospital drug tampering investigation.

Kansas City, Kansas retail pharmacy settles controlled substance recordkeeping allegations

The owner of a retail pharmacy in Kansas City, Kansas entered into a civil settlement with the federal government, agreeing to pay $200,000 to resolve allegations of violating civil provisions of the Controlled Substances Act. The government alleged that between December 31, 2021 and about February 23, 2023 the pharmacy failed to maintain complete and accurate records and inventories of controlled substances and failed to keep certification records for retail sales required under the Combat Methamphetamine Epidemic Act. The claims are allegations only and there has been no determination of liability.

Chicago pharmacy settles federal claims after technicians diverted hydrocodone

The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Illinois reached a civil settlement with a Chicago retail pharmacy over alleged Controlled Substances Act violations, including inadequate recordkeeping and ineffective controls against theft and diversion. Between 2015 and 2017, two pharmacy technicians at the pharmacy stole more than 56,000 hydrocodone pills and sold them, with one falsifying inventory records to conceal the theft; both pleaded guilty to federal drug charges and were sentenced in 2019. Under the settlement the pharmacy agreed to pay a $250,000 penalty and had already completed obligations under a memorandum of agreement with the DEA. The settlement is not an admission of liability by the pharmacy.

Chicago pharmacy settles federal Controlled Substances Act claims after technician hydrocodone thefts

The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Illinois announced a civil settlement with a Chicago pharmacy over alleged Controlled Substances Act violations that allegedly allowed opioids to be diverted between 2015 and 2017. During that period two pharmacy technicians stole more than 56,000 hydrocodone pills and were sentenced in 2019 to five years and one year in prison. Under the settlement the pharmacy agreed to pay a $250,000 penalty; the settlement is not an admission of liability.

Chicago pharmacy settles Controlled Substances Act claims after technicians stole hydrocodone

The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Illinois announced a settlement with a Chicago pharmacy over alleged Controlled Substances Act violations that, according to the office, enabled the diversion of opioids over an extended period. A Drug Enforcement Administration inspection and audit found inadequate records for the receipt and disposition of controlled substances and a lack of effective controls against theft and diversion. According to the release, two pharmacy technicians conspired between 2015 and 2017 to steal more than 56,000 hydrocodone pills and sell them outside the pharmacy. The settlement resolves alleged violations and is not a finding of liability.