Miami

Ex-Mount Sinai Medical Center Worker Accused of Stealing Medicine

A former worker at Mount Sinai Medical Center in Miami Beach was arrested along with his girlfriend after police say he dressed up in his old scrubs and tried to steal medicine from the hospital.

Richard Julian Elliott, 43, and Amanda Lee Cochraine, 31, were arrested Thursday on several charges including attempted armed burglary, possession of a controlled substance and child neglect, according to Miami Beach Police arrest reports.

Elliott was being held Friday on $50,500 bond, jail records showed. Cochraine was being held on $27,500 bond. It's unknown if they've hired attorneys.

According to the reports, police responded to the hospital after security called about an ex-employee who was trespassing. The reports said Elliott, who was wearing the blue scrubs that he used to wear when he worked there, was spotted walking with a hammer in the hospital.

When a hospital worker began questioning Elliott, he swung the hammer at the worker, the reports said. Two workers began to wrestle with Elliott and were able to get the hammer from him and hold him until an officer arrived, the reports said.

Elliott was found to have 20 vials in his pocket, including 9 Fentanyl and 11 Versed, both controlled substances, the reports said.

According to the reports, Cochraine fled in a car when officers arrived at the scene. She was later pulled over and it was discovered her 15-month-old daughter was in the backseat of the car, the reports said.

"Mount Sinai Medical Center security observed an individual engaged in suspicious activities and apprehended him. The individual was turned over to the Miami Beach Police Department," the hospital said in a statement. "Mount Sinai Medical Center has and continues to cooperate with authorities relating to this situation."

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