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VERNON — A former supervisor in the pharmacy at UConn’s Student Health Services infirmary pleaded guilty Friday to first-degree larceny and illegal distribution of narcotics and faces up to two years in prison.
UConn police arrested Michael Olzinksi, 46, of Coventry in April 2016 following an investigation that was prompted by UConn’s auditors.
The auditors found evidence that Olzinski purchased items for personal use through the pharmacy and did not pay for them, stole cash from the cash register and ordered thousands of oxycodone pills that he then diverted to a person who was not entitled to receive them.
He initially faced 173 counts of second-degree forgery along with the larceny and drug charges, but under the terms of a plea agreement pleaded guilty to the larceny and drug charges. He is scheduled to be sentenced April 27 at Superior Court in Rockville. Under the terms of the deal, Olzinski faces 10 years in prison, suspended after he serves two years, and three years of probation. His lawyer will be able to argue for less time.
Olzinski no longer works for UConn and surrendered his pharmacist license.
The investigation by UConn’s auditors found that Olzinski ordered $4,832 worth of personal care items for his family, including diapers, shampoo and over the counter medications from the student infirmary’s vendor and never paid for them; found that he stole $3,410 in cash from the cash register; and diverted oxycodone and other opioids to a third party, according to the warrant for his arrest. The total financial loss to the university was $37,954.
The investigation also found that Olzinski falsified prescriptions and logs for controlled substances, according to the warrant.