NEW YORK (1010 WINS) — A Bergen County man was sentenced to 3.5 years in prison for stealing over $8 million worth of HIV prescription medication from a New Jersey veterans hospital, the Department of Justice said Thursday.
According to court documents and testimony, Wagner Checonolasco, also known as "Wanny," 34, of Lyndhurst, N.J., conspired with Lisa M. Hoffman and others to steal HIV medication that belonged to the Department of Veterans Affairs from Aug. 2017 through Nov. 20, 2019.
Hoffman allegedly stole the medication from the pharmacy of her employer, the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in East Orange, New Jersey, and then sold the stolen medication to Checonolasco for cash.
She allegedly used her position as a VAMC procurement official to place large orders for HIV prescription medications in order to steal the excess and sell it to Checonolasco, who then resold it for a profit.
Officials said Checonolasco and Hoffman stole approximately $8.2 million worth of HIV medication belonging to the VAMC.
Checolonasco previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Esther Salas to an information charging him with conspiring to steal government property. Hoffman also pleaded guilty to her role and is scheduled to be sentenced on March 9.
In addition to his prison sentence, Checolonasco was ordered on Thursday to pay restitution of $8.2 million and three years of supervised release.
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