A former nurse has pleaded guilty to fraud and drug possession after admitting to defrauding a private medical clinic in Quebec of more than $55,000 to illegally obtain opioid medications.
Fraud uncovered at private clinic
The accused, Lovedip Sandhu (35), a Canadian national and resident of Pierrefonds, entered a guilty plea in mid-January to charges of fraud exceeding $5,000 and simple possession of narcotics. The offences relate to her employment in 2021 at a private plastic surgery clinic in Montreal, according to a report by French-language daily La Presse.
Sandhu was employed as a nursing assistant at Clinique K, a plastic surgery clinic in Westmount. Her responsibilities included preparing patients for surgery, managing medication orders and liaising with pharmaceutical suppliers on behalf of the clinic.
Forged signatures and false orders
Prosecutors said that between March and September 2021, Sandhu carried out at least 75 fraudulent transactions without her employer’s knowledge. She allegedly forged the signature of the clinic’s owner, Dr Karl Schwarz, to place orders for opioid drugs.
She later collected the medications from pharmacies and paid for them using the clinic’s credit cards, resulting in losses of more than $55,000.
Large quantity of opioids obtained
Through the scheme, Sandhu obtained 3,778 one-millilitre vials of sufentanil and 2,138 one-millilitre vials of hydromorphone, both powerful opioid drugs.
At the time, she was a registered member of the Quebec Order of Nurses and Nursing Assistants, but was expelled from the professional body in 2022.
Addiction claim and sentencing
Following her arrest in September 2021, Sandhu told police she had developed an addiction earlier that year due to health issues. Searches of her residences uncovered empty syringes, medication vials, boxes of drugs and around $11,000 in cash.
Sentencing submissions in the case have been postponed until June.