A former registered nurse who was captured on video breaking into a safe containing controlled substances at HealthCare Express in Texarkana, Texas, pleaded guilty Tuesday to tampering with a consumer product.
Clifford Russell Harris, 38, went before U.S. Magistrate Judge Caroline Craven for a plea hearing to a criminal information in the Texarkana Division of the Eastern District of Texas. He is represented by Texarkana attorney Michael Friedman. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Hornok represented the government.
Harris first broke the lock on the safe and then removed the drug fentanyl, which is a narcotic used in medical settings, from a vial and then filled the empty vial with some other substance to conceal his actions Dec. 29, 2018. According to the information, Harris used a syringe to remove the narcotic.
According to the Texas Nursing Board website, Harris lost his licenses as a registered nurse and as a licensed vocational nurse as a result.
Craven placed Harris on a $10,000 unsecured appearance bond. He faces up to 10 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000 at sentencing. Craven ordered that Harris will undergo random drug testing.
