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An anesthesiologist pleaded guilty to stealing fentanyl from Lakewood Medical Center in Lee’s Summit and could face four years in prison without parole.
Dr. Roman Peplinski admitted that he took fentanyl from Lakewood in November 2022, claiming it was for a patient who already had been discharged, according to a release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Missouri. In addition, fentanyl wasn’t on that patient’s medication list.
The doctor also admitted that he withdrew fentanyl from three vials from September through November 2022, according to the release. In February 2023, Lakewood employees reported to the Drug Enforcement Administration that three vials in an automatic dispensing cabinet appeared to have been tampered with. They sent seven total vials for testing, and three were found to have been tampered with: one had no fentanyl, and two had only a small amount.
No patients appear to have been harmed by the theft, according to the release, which did not indicate what Peplinski did with the pilfered fentanyl.
Peplinski also worked at Truman Medical Center, like Lakewood part of University Health. He worked for Kansas City-based Union Hill Group. The University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Medicine also lists Peplinski as a faculty member on its website.
No sentencing date has been set.