Miami nurse sentenced for stealing fentanyl, risking patient safety with saline swaps

MIAMI, Fla. (CBS12) — A registered nurse was sentenced to prison after he was found to have stolen medical-grade fentanyl that was supposed to be used for treating patients.

According to the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) The Southern District of Florida, Emmanuel Valentin, 40, worked as a nurse at a Miami hospital’s cardiac catheterization lab. While he was on duty from July 10 to August 18, 2023, Valentin used a syringe to extract medical-grade fentanyl and midazolam. The DOJ says the drugs are medications used as painkillers for patients.

The DOJ says he would replace the fentanyl and the midazolam with saline solution knowing that the vials would be used for pain relief during medical procedures, such as cardiac catheterization and stent placement.

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Valentin would also retrieve empty and discarded vials from the biohazard waste disposal bin, fill them with saline and replace them with the vials he stole, the DOJ states.

The DOJ says Valentin exposed his patients to the risk of unnecessary pain, it also put them at risk of catching Hepatitis C and other bloodborne disease infections.

Valentin was later fired and the hospital notified patients of the possible contamination. Patients were also free blood testing. The DOJ says there were no acute infections discovered.

On May 15, in a separate state prosecution, Valentine confessed to stealing fentanyl from another Miami hospital in March 2023.

This isn’t the first case of a nurse stealing fentanyl that CBS12 has reported on. An ICU nurse at HCA Florida JFK Hospital was arrested after she was accused of tampering with and stealing controlled substances, including fentanyl, in a bid to feed her addiction.

The Atlantis Police Department stated that on August 23, 2024, officers were sent to JFK Hospital in Atlantis after a patient’s mother witnessed Leah Ann Parra stealing medication.

Parra was charged with Grand Theft of a Controlled Substance, Possession of a Controlled Substance and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. She is now free on bond.

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