ROANE MAN CHARGED WITH DRUG THEFTS FROM CALHOUN AND ROANE AMBULANCES

(12/31/2011)

State Police in Roane County have arrested an EMS responder from Reedy on about 73 counts related to the theft of narcotic medication from the Roane and Calhoun County emergency medical services. Twenty-six-year-old Steven Thomas Mullins is in Central Regional Jail on $78,000 bond. Roane County EMS Director Danny Cronin reported to authorities that twenty-nine vials of morphine and fentanyl had been compromised and replaced with saline solution. Cronin said vials had been tampered in five of six Roane County ambulances. At the time of the initial report, Cronin said, "It is something we take very seriously ... We have an internal investigation going on at this time." Now authorities are saying that Mullins also compromised controlled substances while also working at Calhoun County Emergency Medical Services at Mt. Zion. Calhoun EMS Director Josh Johnson did not return a call to confirm stolen drugs from Calhoun ambulances. It was not learned when the tampered drugs were first discovered in Calhoun. Police said the theft of the medications are for personal abuse or for sale. Trooper J.T. Pertillo has been handling the Roane County case, with the compromised vials being handed over to the State Polices forensic lab for further examination. Mullins, a former resident of Calhoun, was arraigned on Calhoun charges in Roane County Friday. Roane charges include two counts of obtaining a controlled substance by fraud, 29 counts possession of schedule two narcotics, and 29 counts intent to deliver imitation controlled substances, according to Central Regional Jail. Calhoun charges include five counts of obtaining a controlled substance by subterfuge with intent to deliver a controlled substance and eight counts of possession, according to Central Regional Jail.

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