A former Department of Veterans Affairs pharmacy technician in Texas has been sentenced to 42 months in prison for stealing prescriptions from veterans and then selling them for profit.
Scott Mitchell Brown, 38, was a pharmacy technician at the VA Medical Center in Kerrville, according to a Feb. 20 Department of Justice release. He devised a scheme to steal narcotics that were being shipped from the pharmacy to VA patients, stealing the drugs and selling them for profit to individuals in the Kerr County area, court documents state.
“Brown's misuse of his position with the VA is a repugnant betrayal by a public servant against our nation’s veterans,” said U.S. Attorney Jaime Esparza for the Western District of Texas. “These veterans rely on the care and compassion of the VA to assist them with ailments and disabilities. Instead, the veterans victimized by Brown and his codefendants were met with cruelty and greed.”
Brown’s codefendant John Swiencki introduced him to another codefendant, David Jeffrey Hughes Jr., according to court documents. Brown and Hughes proceeded to break into mailboxes and steal prescribed narcotics from veterans, using patient records obtained by Brown to identify the mailboxes.
“Medical professionals stealing controlled substances intended for our nation’s veterans cannot be tolerated. This sentence should send a strong message that those who would abuse their positions of trust will be caught and held accountable,” said Special Agent in Charge Kris Raper of the VA Office of Inspector General’s South Central Field Office.
In September 2022, Swiencki was sentenced to 12 months in prison. Hughes was sentenced to 35 months in prison in December 2022.
Brown was sentenced on charges of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute a controlled substance, theft of government property and possession of stolen mail.
Reach Julia LeDoux at Julia@connectingvets.com.