Worcester nurse indicted by grand jury on federal drug tampering charges
A Worcester nurse has been indicted by a federal grand jury on allegations that she stole painkillers from the nursing home where she worked and attempted to cover her tracks by replacing the medication with saline.
Lea Roberge, 32, was indicted on two counts of tampering with a consumer product, specifically morphine, which is a schedule II controlled substance used for pain relief.
She was initially charged with the offense in a November 2015 criminal complaint.
In March 2015, while working as a registered nurse at Holy Trinity Eastern Orthodox Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, Roberge on two separate occasions allegedly tampered with morphine sulfate contained in emergency narcotic kits, which are used at nursing homes in emergency situations when there isn’t enough time to get medication from a pharmacy, according to a press release detailing the indictment from the office of United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz. Roberge allegedly used a syringe to extract morphine from six vials and one bottle, and replaced the extracted medicine with saline in order to avoid getting caught.
She faces up to 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine, although sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties, according to Ortiz’s office.
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