Registered nurse accused of stealing COVID-19 vaccination cards from VA hospital

DETROIT — Federal authorities in Michigan arrested a registered nurse Wednesday who was accused of stealing COVID-19 vaccination cards and selling them to people in the Detroit metro area through Facebook, according to the Justice Department.

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In a news release, federal officials said Bethann Kierczak, 37, of Southgate, faces charges of theft of government property and theft or embezzlement related to a healthcare benefit.

In a complaint filed in court, authorities said Kierczak began stealing or embezzling authentic COVID-19 vaccination record cards from the John D. Dingle VA Medical Center in Detroit in May. Investigators said she also stole vaccine lot numbers needed to make the cards look legitimate. She then sold COVID-19 vaccination cards for between $150 and $200 through Facebook Messenger, authorities said.

Kierczak was a nurse at the VA medical center and had access to COVID-19 vaccination cards because she administered the shots to patients and employees, according to court records.

She was one of two people arrested in the Detroit area on Wednesday on separate allegations of COVID-19 vaccination record fraud. Federal authorities also arrested Raphael Jarrell Smiley, 32, on allegations that he conducted a scheme to import and sell or otherwise distribute fraudulent COVID-19 vaccination record cards, according to the Justice Department.

“Regardless of whether an individual chooses to get vaccinated, we urge everyone to avoid turning to schemes like these to evade vaccination requirements,” acting U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan Saima Mohsin said in a news release. “Importing these cards is a crime. Selling these cards is a crime. We will continue to investigate these crimes and prosecute them accordingly.”

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