RALEIGH – United States Attorney Robert J. Higdon, Jr. announced that today in federal court, United States District Judge James C. Dever III sentenced AARON WAYNE PICKRELL, 50, of Fayetteville, North Carolina, to 3 years’ probation and 90 days house arrest.

PICKRELL was named in a five-count Indictment filed on December 12, 2018, and on March 20, 2019, he pled guilty to one count of Obtaining a Controlled Substance through Forgery, Fraud, Deception, and Subterfuge.

The investigation was conducted by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Office of Inspector General (OIG).  It began on February 28, 2018, when authorities received information from a confidential informant indicating that PICKRELL, a registered nurse (RN) at the VA Medical Center (MC) in Fayetteville, North Carolina, was diverting controlled substances for his own use. 

On March 1, 2018, investigators met with PICKRELL’s supervisor and learned PICKRELL was assigned to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU), but worked in different sections of the VAMC as needed.   A review of VAMC records revealed that PICKRELL had submitted requests through the automated prescription delivery system (Omnicell) fraudulently indicating that a physician had given orders for Hydromorphone (Dilaudid) to be administered to patients.  As a result, PICKRELL thereby gained access to the VA’s automated dispensing pharmacy system in order to obtain Hydromorphone for his own purposes.

On March 2, 2018, VA OIG agents conducted an interview of PICKRELL and he admitted that he had diverted Hydromorphone from the VAMC for his own use for at least the past two to three years.  A comprehensive audit of the Omnicell transaction reports, VA computerized patient record system, and the Veterans Health Information Systems Technology Architecture system revealed that PICKRELL had diverted 5,930 mg of Hydromorphone between January 1, 2015, until May 1, 2018.   The records reflected that PICKRELL had developed a weekly/monthly pattern of diverting controlled substance medications wherein he would override the Omnicell safe guards to withdraw medications without a physician’s order.  The scheme was further accomplished by working at various sections within the Fayetteville VAMC, including the nursing home, urgent care, psychiatric unit, and ICU.  PICKRELL was terminated by the VAMC on March 5, 2018, due to his failure to maintain statutory and VA policy requirements for appointment as an RN, as well as his diversion of controlled substances.

That effort has been implemented through the Take Back North Carolina Initiative of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina. This initiative emphasizes the regional assignment of federal prosecutors to work with law enforcement and District Attorney’s Offices in those communities on a sustained basis to reduce the violent crime rate, drug trafficking, and crimes against law enforcement.  For more information about this initiative click here:  https://www.justice.gov/usao-ednc/tbnc

The investigation of this case was conducted by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Office of Inspector General (OIG).  Assistant United States Attorney Scott A. Lemmon represented the government.

RALEIGH – Robert J. Higdon, Jr., the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina, announces that a federal grand jury in Greenville has returned an indictment charging AARON WAYNE PICKRELL, a former registered nurse at the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Fayetteville, North Carolina, with five counts of obtaining possession of hydromorphone, a Schedule II controlled substance, by misrepresentation, fraud, forgery, deception, and subterfuge.

The indictment alleges that on various dates, PICKRELL falsely reported through the Medical Center’s computer system that a physician had given an order for a controlled substance to be administered to a patient when no such order had been issued, thereby gaining access to the VA’s automated dispensing pharmacy system in order to fraudulently obtain controlled substances that he then diverted for his own purposes.

For each count, if convicted, PICKRELL would face maximum penalties of four years’ imprisonment, a fine of $250,000 or both fine and imprisonment, and a term of supervised release following any term of imprisonment.

This case is part of the Take Back North Carolina Initiative, a strategy implemented by United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina.  This initiative emphasizes the regional assignment of federal prosecutors to work with law enforcement and District Attorney’s Offices on a sustained basis in those communities to reduce the violent crime rate, drug trafficking, and crimes against law enforcement.

The charges and allegations contained in the indictment are merely accusations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law. 

This case was brought by the United States Attorney’s Office through partnerships with the Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Scott A. Lemmon.