Ashley Erb Stole 493 Narcotic Pills from Elderly Patients, Sentenced To Jail For Violating Plea Agreement
Schneiderman: Stealing Narcotics Harms Patients And Fuels Cycle Of Addiction
NEWARK – Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman today announced the sentence of Ashly Erb, 26, a Licensed Practical Nurse from Savannah, NY, who had been accused of stealing 493 narcotic pills from elderly patients residing at DeMay Living Center in Newark.
“Employees at nursing facilities are entrusted with the responsibility of providing critical care to New Yorkers’ loved ones,” said Attorney General Schneiderman. “When patients are denied medications so that others can divert them for personal use, it harms patients and fuels the cycle of addiction.”
An investigation launched by Attorney General Schneiderman’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit and the New York State Department of Health’s Bureau of Narcotics Enforcement (BNE) revealed that over a roughly one-month period of time, Ashly Erb falsified records indicating that she administered narcotic drugs to fourteen separate residents, when she actually diverted the drugs for her own personal use. In one case alone, Erb stole 94 Oxycodone pills from a resident, while falsely completing documents indicating that she administered those drugs to the patient.
On June 3, 2015, Erb pleaded guilty to one count of Petit Larceny before Newark Village Justice Michael R. Miller with a sentence promise of a conditional discharge if she completed treatment and was not re-arrested. Her sentence was adjourned to December 2, 2015. However, prior to this sentence date, she violated the conditions of her plea. Accordingly, on January 6, 2016, Judge Michael Miller sentenced Erb to 99 days in jail.
The Attorney General’s Office thanks the New York State Department of Health for the agency’s invaluable assistance on this case.
The case was investigated by Special Investigator Debra Clementi with assistance from MFCU Deputy Chief Investigator William Falk, and BNE Senior Investigator Jake McCarty. The case is being prosecuted by Special Assistant Attorney General Timothy McFarland. Catherine Wagner is Director of the Rochester Regional MFCU Office and the Upstate Chief of Criminal Investigations. The Medicaid Fraud Control Unit is led by Acting Director Amy Held and Assistant Deputy Attorney General Paul J. Mahoney. The Division of Criminal Justice is led by Executive Deputy Attorney General Kelly Donovan.