A Wisconsin pharmacist has pleaded guilty in federal court on Tuesday to spoiling hundreds of doses of the Moderna coronavirus vaccine.
Steven Brandenburg, 46, pleaded guilty to two counts of ‘attempting to tamper with consumer products with reckless disregard for the risk of another person being put in danger of death or bodily injury’, according to a Press release of the Department of Justice (DOJ).
The charges carry a maximum sentence of ten years in prison.
‘This person used his special access to tamper with the vials of the much-needed COVID-19 vaccine. The FBI takes the allegations of tampering with consumer products very seriously and will use all available resources to bring to justice those who willfully endanger the public’s health.
Officials from attorney Aurora Health’s medical center in Grafton, Wis., Reported last month that an employee intentionally removed more than 50 vials of the Moderna vaccine from the freezer.
It was originally believed that the incident was due to ‘human error’, but later it was suspected that Brandenburg had done so on purpose, and it was believed that the vaccine was ‘unsafe’.
The Moderna vaccine still needs to be stored at colder temperatures to remain effective. According to the DOJ, Brandenburg removed the vaccines on two consecutive nights for several hours. Fifty-seven people received doses of the vaccine from this group before Brandenburg’s actions were discovered.
The DOJ states that Brandenburg has been expressing its feelings about vaccinations to its staff at the hospital for at least two years. His actions are estimated to have destroyed more than 500 doses of the vaccine.
Brandenburg’s license was suspended earlier this month after he was arrested by authorities on charges of reckless threats, disregard for a prescription drug and criminal property damage.