Pharmacist accused of destroying vaccines: no previous discipline
According to the Wisconsin Department of Safety and Professional Services, he has had his pharmacy license since 1997.
GRAFTON, Wis. – A pharmacist remains in Ozaukee County Jail after being arrested Thursday, Dec. 31. Police say the 46-year-old man admitted to deliberately destroying the bottles of the COVID-19 vaccine at Aurora Medical Center in Grafton.
The Grafton man has been a pharmacist in Wisconsin for decades. He will only be formally charged next week due to the New Year holidays; FOX6 News will not nominate him until then for that reason.
Questions remain Friday, January 1, as to why the 46-year-old destroyed 570 doses of Moderna vaccine.
“At the moment we really cannot rule on motives,” said Dr. Jeff Bahr, president of Aurora Health Care Medical Group, said.
According to Bahr, a pharmacy technician first discovered 57 vials of the vaccine on the morning of December 26th.
The suspect initially told supervisors that he accidentally removed the vials. A few days later, however, he admitted that he had deliberately omitted them on two occasions – December 25 and 25 – which made them ineffective.
“We were able to adapt very quickly to the current situation. We were able to secure additional vaccine from other sites in our system,” Bahr said.
Aurora Medical Center in Grafton
Aurora hands over the investigation to the FBI, FDA and local law enforcement. Grafton police arrested the suspect at his home on Thursday, December 31st.
Darlene Scow watched as her neighbor was arrested.
“It’s awful. You can not answer for someone with a skewed mind. You just can not answer it,” Scow said.
Grafton Police Department
According to the Department of Security and Professional Services in Wisconsin, the suspect has had his pharmacy license since 1997, without having registered the investigation or disciplinary action in the past.
The 46-year-old is now out of work and in jail pending multiple charges. These charges include first-degree reckless endangerment and criminal property damage.
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Fifty-seven people in the hospital did receive vaccinations from the 57 vials in question before discovering that they were useless.
Officials say the doses pose no health risk to those who received them.
Pharmacist arrested after deliberately omitting COVID-19 vaccines
Fifty-seven people have omitted coronavirus vaccines that were removed twice from the refrigerator at Aurora Grafton Medical Center in a deliberate act, Aurora said Thursday.