PORTLAND, Maine — A former UPS driver admitted Monday in U.S. District Court that he stole narcotics intended for Maine veterans.
Jeffrey Wheeler Jr., 31, of Sebago waived indictment and pleaded guilty to one count of theft from interstate shipments, according to the U.S attorney’s office.
Wheeler remains free on $10,000 unsecured bail.
A sentencing date has not been set.
By pleading guilty, Wheeler admitted that between December 2013 and February 2014 he stole eight packages sent from the Veterans Administration medical facility in Togus to outpatient veterans clinics. The drugs were valued at nearly $1,000.
An investigation by Criminal Investigations Division of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and the Office of Inspector General began in February 2014 after complaints were filed by five outpatient clinics that they had not received shipment of narcotic medications the previous December and January, according to the prosecution version of events to which Wheeler pleaded guilty.
All the packages were routed through UPS’s South Portland facility, the court document said. Investigators caught Wheeler stealing the packages on two occasions when they sent out fictitious shipments from the Togus facility that contained drugs.
When confronted, Wheeler admitted stealing packages containing oxycodone, Suboxone and Adderall, which he said he used and shared with others, according to the prosecution version.
Wheeler faces up to three years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. He also could be ordered to pay restitution.