Ozaukee County Jail
Steven Brandenburg
Steven Brandenburg is a pharmacist from Grafton, Wisconsin, accused of tampering with doses of the COVID-19 vaccine, according to prison records.
A prosecutor said in a virtual hearing that his motive was the belief that the vaccine was not safe. The prosecutor also said Brandenburg brought a gun to work twice. He believed that the vaccine could change people’s DNA, according to a probable cause statement that he claims he also admitted to being a conspiracy theorist.
Brandenburg was fined at the Ozaukee County Jail, which is located in a suburban area near Milwaukee, on preliminary charges of criminal property damage and reckless second-degree security risk, both crimes. He is described in prison records as a 46-year-old white man. No bail amount is listed. The custody date is December 31, 2020.
The police described a scenario in which the pharmacist is accused of tampering with vaccines to render them useless before they are administered to people.
“Grafton detectives indicate that the individual knew that the spoiled vaccines would be useless and that the people who received the vaccines would think they were vaccinated against the virus, when in fact they were not,” said a statement to the police press.
Here is the reserve sheet:
Ozaukee Co JailSteven Brandenburg
Here’s what you need to know:
1. The Grafton Police accuse the pharmacist of intentionally destroying 57 vials containing 570 doses of COVID-19 vaccine
Grafton PD
The Grafton, Wisconsin police department wrote in a press release on December 31 that they arrested a pharmacist for “intentionally destroying several COVID-19 vaccination vials at Advocate Aurora Health Hospital in Grafton”.
The statement said that a former employee of Advocate Aurora Health Hospital in Grafton was arrested on the afternoon of December 31 for “tampering and causing the destruction of 57 vials containing approximately 570 doses of the new Coronavirus vaccine”.
Grafton police were called to Advocate Aurora Health Hospital in Grafton on December 30 in a report that a former pharmacy employee intentionally removed vaccines from cold storage and left them overnight, generating about 570 doses of the vaccine. useless ”, according to health professionals. Grafton police immediately started investigating to determine why and what criminal charges could be made, if any.
No criminal charges had been formally filed on January 2, 2021. Aurora’s president says it was a “situation involving a bad actor, not a bad lawsuit”.
2. Aurora Health initially painted the incident as an accident; Brandenburg has a valid pharmacist license in the state of Wisconsin
WI State
According to the records of the Wisconsin Department of Safety and Professional Services, Steven R. Brandenburg is a licensed pharmacist. Your location is reported as Saukville, Wisconsin, and your credential license is in effect. It was granted on August 22, 1997 and was listed as valid until May 31, 2022. It is listed as meeting all requirements and having no orders under its license.
According to the police, the investigation revealed that a former pharmacist, residing in Grafton, “removed the vials from cold storage knowing that they would not be usable. Aurora’s preliminary investigation into the incident, which was first reported in the news on Saturday, December 26, 2020, determined that the incident was accidental. “
GettyAn illustration shows vials with Covid-19 vaccine stickers and syringes bearing the logo of the American pharmaceutical company Pfizer, on November 17, 2020.
However, after receiving additional information, Aurora Health’s public safety sector “began a deeper dive into the incident and found that the bottles were intentionally removed by the pharmacist. In a written statement to Aurora Health Public Safety Officials, the former employee admitted to intentionally removing the vaccine, knowing that if it were not stored properly, the vaccine would be ineffective, ”said the police.
3. The patients did receive the vials, but were not harmed, says the release; The pharmacist is in the middle of a divorce
Saul Loeb-Pool / Getty ImagesA model of the COVID-19.
The police release said that Grafton police detectives noted that the 57 doses of the vaccine were distributed to patients, but, according to Aurora health officials, there are no health concerns related to the damaged doses. The doses are effectively “useless”.
The value of the spoiled doses was estimated between $ 8,000 and $ 11,000.
Police arrested Brandenburg on charges of recklessly jeopardizing security in the first degree (a Class F crime), tampering with a prescription drug (a Class H crime) and criminal damage to property (a Class I crime) . However, only two of the three charges are listed in the prison records; the recommended charge for tampering with a prescription drug is not included in your Brandenburg booking information.
Aurora Health says it has administered more than 23,000 vaccines to frontline “team members”. The company’s president said at a virtual news conference that there is no evidence that vaccines already administered make patients unsafe.
WISN-TV reported that its reporters tried to speak to Brandenburg’s “ex-wife”, but she declined to comment.
“(I watched them) take him in handcuffs. He was at the rear of the team, ”Darlene Scow, who lives on her street, told WISN. “My reaction is that I hope he stays seated for a long time, because there are people who should have taken these injections and if they get the virus now? It is horrible for someone to do this on purpose, deliberately. “
Wisconsin court records show that the pharmacist’s wife is the petitioner in a pending divorce filed in June. Records say that minor children are involved in the divorce. The parties “ask to circumvent the mediation and have a LAG appointed”, say the case, referring to a Guardian Ad Litem, a lawyer representing the children, who was then appointed. Court records indicate that there was an emergency request in November from Brandenburg’s lawyer that Brandenburg’s ex-wife’s lawyer opposed. “The court orders the suspension of the placement due to COVID”, say the case, although they do not explain further.
In 2004, Brandenburg was the petitioner in a previous divorce.
4. Wisconsin administered more than 47,000 vaccines, but that is only part of those allocated to the state
DHSWisconsin vaccine COVID-19 statistics.
On December 29, according to the latest available statistics, the state of Wisconsin received 265,575 COVID-19 vaccines from the federal government. Of these, 156,875 were sent and 47,157 administered, according to state statistics. The number of vaccines administered decreased during the Christmas week.
Wisconsin saw a huge increase in COVID-19 cases, with more than 480,000 confirmed cases. More than 2.8 million people have been tested. Ninety-three percent of people have recovered and there are more than 28,000 active cases.
According to state statistics, 1% of people died, or 4,859. More than 21,000 have already been hospitalized. This is 4.4% of the total.
5. The reason is unclear, but officials say Brandenburg has admitted removing the vaccine from refrigeration
Scott Olson / Getty ImagesA nurse shows a vial of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine.
The authorities have not revealed the reason for the alleged violation.
Aurora Health President Dr. Jeffrey Bahr said at a virtual news conference: “On Saturday, December 26, early in the morning, one of our pharmacy technicians discovered what 57 vials of the Modern vaccine were, enough for about 570 doses, outside the refrigerator in which these bottles were stored. “
He said: “We cannot make any judgment on the reason at this time”, saying that the authorities are investigating this.
The vaccine vials “went back to the fridge” and the technician reported the incident. The pharmacist claimed that it was an “inadvertent mistake” at first. They later determined that the vaccine “could still be administered” because it had a 12-hour viability period.
An internal review continued.
He added: “In the days that followed, as we continued our internal review, we became increasingly suspicious of the individual’s behavior. The individual was suspended and, after several interviews throughout the week, admitted yesterday for intentionally removing the vaccine from the refrigeration ”.
The 57 vaccinations have become less effective or ineffective. These 57 people were notified. “The vaccine program here remains safe and critical to get us out of the pandemic,” said Bahr, indicating that it was now a law enforcement issue.
READ THE FOLLOWING: Anthony Quinn Warner’s Life and Death.