A Dallas anesthesiologist has been arrested on allegations of purposely tampering with IV luggage, resulting in the loss of life of one in every of his coworkers and accidents to a number of folks, federal prosecutors mentioned Thursday.
The Justice Division introduced federal felony prices in opposition to Raynaldo Rivera Ortiz Jr. for allegedly injecting nerve blocking brokers and different medication into affected person IV luggage, resulting in the loss of life of a co-worker at a surgical middle, together with cardiac emergencies for a number of sufferers, in response to a press launch from the U.S Legal professional's Workplace.
Ortiz faces federal counts of tampering with a client product and deliberately adulterating medication.
The felony complaints states that on June 21, one in every of Ortiz's 55-year-old feminine coworkers died instantly after utilizing an IV bag taken from the surgical middle the place she and Ortiz labored. An post-mortem discovered that she died from a deadly dose of a nerve blocking agent typically used throughout the administration of anesthesia, prosecutors mentioned.
On Aug. 24, an 18-year-old male affected person skilled a cardiac emergency throughout surgical procedure and was hospitalized, prosecutors mentioned.
Staff on the surgical middle had been then in a position to single out 10 extra cases the place sufferers skilled sudden cardiac emergencies throughout "in any other case unremarkable" surgical procedures between Might and August 2022, prosecutors mentioned.
Surveillance video linked Ortiz to a number of of the incidents, in response to the grievance.
In a single occasion, Ortiz was captured inserting a single IV bag inside a stainless-steel bag hotter, scanning the hallway, and rapidly strolling away. Only one hour later, a 56-year-old lady suffered a cardiac emergency throughout a beauty surgical procedure after a bag from the hotter was used throughout her process, prosecutors mentioned.
In one other occasion, Ortiz was noticed leaving his working room carrying an IV bag hidden in a paper folder and swapping it for one more bag from the hotter. About half-hour later, a 54-year-old lady suffered a cardiac emergency throughout a scheduled beauty surgical procedure after a bag from the hotter was used throughout her process, in response to the felony grievance.
Prosecutors mentioned the entire incidents started two days after Oritz was notified of a disciplinary inquiry for "deviating from the usual of care" throughout an anesthesia process. As well as, all of the incidents happened across the time Ortiz was working within the facility, and none happened whereas he was on trip. Prosecutors added that Ortiz complained to his co-workers that the middle was attempting to "crucify" him.
If convicted as charged, he faces a most sentence of life in jail.