BURLINGTON, N.C. — Burlington Police are searching for a nurse accused of stealing hundreds of vials of medication from her workplace.
Police said they were contacted by Authoracare, Hospice of Alamance in late August after discovering missing vials of medication from their facility.
Later, after an internal audit, Authoracare came back to the police and said one of their nurses, Lindsay Story, 39, was stealing the vials.
Story is accused of stealing over 600 vials of hydromorphone (or "Dilaudid") over a five-month period, from April to August. The opioid is used for pain management.
Police accused story of using her access to computers provided by Authoracare to falsify the medication distribution process, which allowed her to take more vials than was needed.
Police said there is no evidence of Story tampering with any patient's medication.
"During our investigations one of our primary concerns was to make sure that the patients were taken care of and throughout the investigations. We found no evidence that they had any problems at all," said Burlington police investigator, Mary Somasundaram.
Somasundaram says they have not found any evidence that would suggest the vials are on the streets.
"Typically, in these types of cases if it's not something that's going to be sold out on the street, it's something that could indicate a substance abuse problem," Somasundaram explained.
Story is wanted for embezzlement of a controlled substance, with additional charges possible as the investigation continues, police said.
Authoracare released the following statement on the matter to WFMY News 2:
"Yesterday, AuthoraCare Collective was mentioned in a news story regarding a former employee.
As we cannot comment on matters regarding Human Resources or pending investigations, there will be no comment on the story itself.
However, we are proud of AuthoraCare Collective’s commitment to quality and ethical practice. We have a comprehensive quality and compliance program to ensure patient safety and expose any unethical behavior. We remain fully committed to following all laws and regulations and we cooperate fully with the authorities."
Burlington police say they have been in touch with Story, but she has not turned herself in yet.
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