United States Drug Enforcement Administration

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – An Osage Beach, Mo., nurse pleaded guilty in federal court today to illegally obtaining fentanyl from a hospital for his own use. Charles Welch Jr., 65, waived his right to a grand jury and pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Roseann A. Ketchmark to a federal...

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – An anesthesiologist at a Lee’s Summit, Mo., hospital pleaded guilty in federal court today to illegally taking prescription fentanyl from the hospital. Roman Peplinski, 37, of Kansas City, Mo., waived his right to a grand jury and pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Greg Kays to...

KANSAS CITY, Kan. – A Kansas man was sentenced to 18 months in prison and his nursing license forfeited after stealing controlled substances from his employer. According to court documents, in March 2021, Alec Ramirez, 32, of Overland Park, Kan., removed vials of fentanyl and hydromorphone from an automated dispensing...

ST. LOUIS – A nurse at a St. Louis County, Missouri, hospital pleaded guilty to a federal felony Thursday and admitted fraudulently obtaining fentanyl for her own personal use. Lindsay J. Maupin, 31, of Cape Girardeau, pleaded guilty in front of U.S. District Judge Stephen R. Clark to one felony...

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – A Nixa, Mo., physician was sentenced in federal court today after taking bribes from a drug manufacturer in exchange for prescribing its fentanyl drug to his patients so often that he ranked highest in the state in net sales of the product. Randall Halley, 65, was sentenced...

KANSAS CITY, Kan. – A federal grand jury in Kansas returned an indictment charging an Overland Park, Kansas, man on two counts of tampering with a consumer product, one count of possession of fentanyl by deception and subterfuge, and one count of possession of hydromorphone by deception and subterfuge. According...

KANSAS CITY, Kan. – A federal grand jury in Kansas City, Kansas, returned an indictment charging a nurse from Kansas City, Missouri, with two counts of tampering with a consumer product and two counts of possession of fentanyl by deception and subterfuge. According to court documents, between January 2020 and...

ST. LOUIS – In a complaint filed February 23, 2021, by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Missouri, the government alleges Elizabeth Dembo unlawfully dispensed controlled substances to patients during her time as the pharmacist-in-charge of Olive Street Pharmacy, LLC. The retail pharmacy is located in the...