Saugus Woman Arraigned in Connection with Alleged Prescription Medication Theft

LINCOLN – Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan has announced that Rebecca Bowman, 37, of Saugus, was arraigned today in Middlesex Superior Court and charged with larceny of a drug, caretaker abuse and possession of a Class B substance in connection with an alleged theft of prescription medication from an elderly man in her care.

Clerk Magistrate Matthew Day released the defendant on personal recognizance and ordered the defendant to not work with the elderly and to stay away from, and have no contact with, the victim. The next scheduled hearing in this case is September 20.

In December of 2016 the defendant began working as a visiting nurse for a 70-year-old man in Lincoln. The defendant would come to the victim’s home three times a week and treat him in his bedroom. The victim had been prescribed oxycodone pills to alleviate his pain. In April of 2017 the victim began to notice that his pain medication pills were disappearing and that by the end of the month he had fewer pills than he should have. As a result, the victim experienced extreme pain. In December of 2017 the victim began to suspect the defendant. On two occasions, following the defendant’s visits to the home, the victim counted his pills before the defendant arrived and after she departed. The victim allegedly discovered that after the defendant left some of his prescription pills were gone. The victim then notified police.

On January 3, 2018, police set up a surveillance camera in the victim’s room and counted the number of pills in the victim’s possession prior to the defendant’s visit. After the defendant left, police allegedly discovered that 14 of the victim’s prescription pills were missing. Video surveillance allegedly showed the defendant opening the pill bottle and removing the medication while the victim was not in the room.

The prosecutor assigned to this case is Assistant District Attorney Kristen Noto. The Victim Witness Advocate is Joseph Bernstein.

As part of her county-wide initiative to raise awareness about the risks and impacts of the opioid crisis for seniors, Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan launched the Middlesex District Attorney’s Office’s Grandparent Program in 2016. This program educates seniors in Middlesex County about how to manage their prescription medication, keep medication safe from theft, properly dispose of unused or expired medication and identify signs of drug addiction in loved ones.

District Attorney Ryan, who previously chaired the Middlesex District Attorney’s Office’s Elder Protection Unit, has developed this program recognizing that the impact of the opioid crisis on seniors is extensive and that seniors are often the most vulnerable secondary victims of the opioid epidemic.

For more information and resources on protecting seniors, visit here.