Pharmacy Technician Pleads Guilty to Tampering with Hospital Pain Medication

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut; Fernando P. McMillan, Special Agent in Charge of the FDA Office of Criminal Investigations, New York Field Office; and Stephen Belleau, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration for New England, announced that TIFFANY MOSS, 34, of Montville, waived her right to be indicted and pleaded guilty today in Bridgeport federal court to a charge related to her tampering with pain medication at the hospital where she worked.

According to court documents and statements made in court, Moss was employed as a pharmacy technician at Backus Hospital in Norwich. On January 11, 2024, she used her employee ID badge to access the secure storage area at the hospital. She then removed three bags that contained a solution of hydromorphone, took a portion of the hydromorphone solution from each bag for her own use, and replaced the portion she took with saline. She then returned the bags to the storage area in a location where they could be distributed for patient use.

Moss pleaded guilty to tampering with a consumer product, an offense that carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years. A sentencing date is not scheduled.

Moss is released on a $50,000 bond, and is prohibited from working in any location with access to narcotics while awaiting sentencing.

This matter is being investigated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Office of Criminal Investigation; the DEA's Hartford Diversion Control Division; the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection, Drug Control Division; and the Norwich Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ray Miller.