JUL 12, 2021

Attorney General Wilson announces two Upstate women indicted on charges of stealing prescription drugs from nursing home residents

(COLUMBIA, S.C.) – July 12, 2021 - South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson, announced that a Greenville County Grand Jury has indicted Kelly Michelle Morgan, 36, aka Kelly Morgan-Cardinale, and Bryanna Marie Govin, 24, on charges of stealing prescription medications from nursing home residents. An investigation conducted by the S.C. Attorney General’s Office Medicaid Fraud Control Unit (SCMFCU), Fountain Inn Police Department, and the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) revealed that both defendants used their employment status at a residential care facility to obtain access to controlled substances prescribed to the individuals under the defendants’ care.

Specifically, the defendants are alleged to have unlawfully possessed controlled substances that were prescribed for the vulnerable adults residing at the facility.  Additionally, Morgan is alleged to have trafficked controlled substances, neglected vulnerable adults by failing to provide supervision or medical care, and for practicing nursing for a period of time without authorization.

Most of the indictments allege that various incidents occurred from October of 2019 until June of 2020.

Morgan:          1 count of Unlawful Possession of a Controlled Substance S.C. Code §44-53-370 (c) (d) (2)

3 counts of Attempt to Furnish False or Fraudulent Information S.C. Code §44-53-420 (a)

1 count of Furnishing False or Fraudulent Information S.C. Code §44-53-390 (a) (4)

1 count of Unauthorized Practice of Nursing S.C. Code §40-33-200

2 counts of Neglect of a Vulnerable Adult S.C. Code §43-35-85 (c)

1 count of Trafficking in Illegal Drugs; 1st offense S.C. Code §44-53-370 (e) (3) (a) 1

 

Govin:             1 count of Unlawful Possession of a Controlled Substance; Scheduled IV S.C. Code §44-53-370 (c) (d) (2)

4 counts of Unlawful Possession of a Controlled Substance; Scheduled II S.C. Code §44-53-370 (c) (d) (1)

The SCMFCU will be prosecuting both cases under its patient abuse jurisdiction.  Attorney General Wilson stressed all defendants are presumed innocent unless and until they are proven guilty in a court of law.

The South Carolina MFCU receives 75 percent of its funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under a grant award totaling $1,478,492 for Federal fiscal year 2021. The remaining 25 percent, totaling $492,826 for FY 2021, is funded by South Carolina.

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