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An area woman faces multiple felonies after authorities say she stole — then used — a powerful drug while working as a nurse at Mayo Clinic.
Tiffany Marie Gustafson, 32, of Sargeant, has been charged with 10 counts of felony theft. Her first appearance in Olmsted County District Court is set for May 18.
The investigation began Dec. 14, when the Rochester Drug Diversion and Investigation Response Team received a call from a local pharmacist about a registered nurse — Gustafson — he suspected was diverting Fentanyl, a pain medication 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine.
A review of a computer-based system that nurses use to sign out medication and correlating patient records indicated Gustafson had stolen at least 81 vials of Fentanyl in the past month, the complaint says.
Based on the computer records, patient records and Gustafson’s employment records at Mayo Clinic Hospital-Saint Marys Campus, the thefts occurred between Oct. 26 and Dec. 14, court documents say.
Gustafson allegedly admitted to Mayo Security Services and a Rochester police investigator that she’d stolen between 50 and 100 vials of the drug in the past month or so.
She said she used the Fentanyl herself by either administering the drug while she was at work or later at her Sargeant home.
If convicted, each count carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison, a $20,000 fine or both.