Anacortes Nurse Erin Linvoch Pleads Guilty to Narcotic Tampering

ANACORTES, WA – Erin Linvoch, a 33-year-old nurse from Anacortes, has pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Seattle to tampering with consumer products and acquiring a controlled substance by fraud or misrepresentation, according to U.S. Attorney Jenny A. Durkan.

Linvoch, who worked at the Fidalgo Care Center & Rosario Assisted Living until her termination, faces up to ten years in prison when sentenced by U.S. District Judge Richard A. Jones on July 12, 2013.

According to the plea agreement, Linvoch began stealing morphine from Rosario Assisted Living in late 2011. She used her credentials as a registered nurse to request orders for morphine and then diverted entire bottles, replacing them with tap water before returning them to the facility’s medicine carts.

This dangerous act meant that terminally ill patients were not receiving adequate pain medication, potentially leading to overdoses or unnecessary suffering. The tampering was discovered by the facility in February 2012.

The investigation was conducted by the United States Food and Drug Administration, Office of Criminal Investigations, and the Anacortes Police Department, with the case being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Steven Masada and Jerrod Patterson.