Nurse reportedly caught stealing 2 doses of COVID-19 vaccine

A Detroit nurse was caught in the act as she swiped two doses of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine this week, according to a new report. 

The unidentified nurse was arrested Monday when another employee spotted her walking away from her work area at the TCF Center — a convention center now serving as a vaccination site — with two syringes of the vaccine, WJBK reported. 

The employee notified security and the Detroit Police. When authorities tried to confront her, she apparently refused to answer questions and requested a lawyer, according to the report. 

Now, she could face criminal charges and even lose her license.

Hakim Berry, the chief operating officer for the city of Detroit, said he was “really shocked” by the nurse’s actions.

“I’m not sure what your motives were,” he said of the nurse. “And hopefully you can understand the severity of what you did.”

The nurse is not affiliated with a hospital and is likely affiliated with a staffing agency that helps bring in nurses to TCF, according to WJBK. 

Stringent security protocols at the center likely enabled the nurse to be caught before she could leave the building with the stolen syringes, Berry said. 

“Our vaccines are stored off site in a very secure location that’s alarmed and [there is] 24-7 security around that,” he said. “When vaccines are delivered from a pharmacy to the nurse’s station, they are accompanied with security officers.”

While the two doses had to be taken as police evidence and could not be used, everyone scheduled for a vaccine still received one, according to the outlet. 

Since Jan. 13, a total of 109,000 people have been vaccinated at the TCF Center, according to Berry.

The federal government provided the doses to the city’s health department, The Detroit News reported.

The Detroit Police Department is continuing to investigate, Chief James Craig told the outlet.