KCSD investigates drug fraud

The Kootenai County Sheriff's Department is investigating a string of fraudulent prescription painkiller acquisitions within the past couple months at the Hayden Walmart pharmacy.

The suspect, or suspects, acquired a supply of the drug Tramadol on 15 occasions between Jan. 7 and early last week. Tramadol is a narcotic-like pain reliever.

The prescriptions were phoned into the pharmacy by a woman, or women, using fake names. The women claimed to be calling on behalf of Dr. Gayle D. Smith at Dirne Community Health Center, in Coeur d'Alene. Smith told investigators the names used to phone in the prescriptions didn't match with anyone at the office.

The drugs purportedly were for a patient named Patricia Heath, 64, and another individual the sheriff's department declined to identify, who is a likely suspect.

The sheriff's department said a woman, a suspect, picked the prescriptions up in person and paid in cash on each occasion.

The pharmacy, at 550 W. Honeysuckle Ave., became suspicious of a phoned-in prescription on March 25 and called Dirne to verify Smith had in fact approved yet another prescription for Heath, according to an incident report.

The pharmacy found out Smith hadn't authorized anyone to call. Smith also told pharmacy workers she doesn't have a doctor-patient relationship with Heath or the other "patient" at Dirne.

Lt. Stu Miller of the sheriff's department said there was no information for Heath in the agency's database.

The only Patricia Heath on record in Kootenai County was murdered in Bayview in December 2010 by Larry W. Cragun. She was 43.