Police: Woman Stole Pain Medicine from Nursing Home Residents

A 20-year-old woman who apparently had been working at the Cedarbrook-Allentown home in South Whitehall is accused of removing pain medication patches from the bodies of two female residents.

Court records say Briana Lee Hartzag removed Fentanyl Duragesic patches from the body of a bed-bound, non-verbal resident on Aug. 30 and Sept. 3 (Labor Day) and the same kind of patch from a patient in the dementia care unit on Sept. 3.

Police learned from witnesses, employees and shift schedules that Hartzag was not assigned to work on the units on the days when the patches were discovered missing.

Meanwhile, Hartzag also was charged in another incident – she allegedly stole four Marine Corps coins worth more than $200 from a south Allentown home and sold them to a city jewelry store.

In the Cedarbrook case, South Whitehall police officer Michael A. Sorrentino wrote in a criminal complaint that he was dispatched Labor Day evening and that a nursing supervisor told him the bed-bound woman resides in Wing C2.

The woman’s roommate provided Cedarbrook officials with a description of the person taking the 100-mg patches. It matched a description of Hartzag.

The roommate also said she did not recognize Hartzag “as someone who had provided care to either her or [the woman] in the past.”

The dementia-care resident stays in Wing D7. The patch that was removed from her was for 50 mg of Fentanyl and valued at $26, while the patches for the other resident were for 100 mg of the same medication and valued at $53 each.

In the stolen coins case, Hartzag is accused of taking four Marine Corps coins on Nov. 1 – 2003 and 2005 American Eagle coins and two 2010 Silver Eagle coins.

According to court records:

A resident of the 2400 block of S. Fifth Street pointed the finger at Hartzag and identified her as his son’s ex-girlfriend. The man said Hartzag allegedly took the coins between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m.

A woman told police she drove Hartzag to Redd & Company Fine Jewelers, 701 W. Emmaus Ave. in Allentown, to sell the coins. The woman said she – the woman – did not know they were allegedly stolen.

The Redd & Company owner told police he remembered the woman from whom he bought the coins and provided them with sales documentation.

An arrest warrant in the Cedarbrook case was approved Thursday, Dec. 20, and Hartzag was taken into custody Saturday. She was charged with three counts of theft by unlawful taking and three counts of receiving stolen property.

In the coins case, an arrest warrant was approved Nov. 8. She was charged with theft by unlawful taking.

Hartzag, whose last known address was Allentown, was arraigned Saturday in both cases by on-duty District Judge Wayne Maura of Bethlehem and committed to Lehigh County Prison in lieu of $10,000 bail for each case.