A former hospital employee pleads guilty to identity theft and tax fraud after stealing patient information

13 February 2013

Tanya Cullens, formerly a cleaning staff employee at University Community Hospital, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud the Internal Revenue Service, wire fraud, theft of government funds and aggravated identity theft.

In January 2012, Cullens stole a patient list from the hospital and provided it to a co-conspirator, according to her plea agreement in federal court.

The list had the names, birth dates and Social Security numbers of 48 patients who had been treated at the hospital. The list was used to file 10 fraudulent IRS tax returns.

The IRS paid out $44,800 in refunds as a result of the scheme, according a written statement.

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