A suspect has been identified and charges are pending against an individual who is suspected of tampering with security seals on local ambulances in St. Mary’s County, according to local police.
Thomas Patrick Raley, 39, the chief of Emergency Medical Services for St. Mary’s County, has been identified as the lone suspect, according to a release from the St. Mary’s County Sheriff’s Office. While Raley had not yet been officially charged as of press time this week, this is not the first time he was accused of stealing medicine from ambulances.
On July 16, the St. Mary’s County Department of Emergency Services contacted the sheriff’s office and reported suspected tampering with the security seal on a narcotics box in a local medic unit.
“Immediate actions were taken to notify law enforcement and medical authorities; and we are fully cooperating with their ongoing investigation,” Jennifer Utz, emergency services department director, said in a statement. “We are deeply saddened by this incident and are committed to transparency as we navigate this challenge.”
Several years ago, Raley was charged with misdemeanor theft and property destruction offenses in court papers alleging he stole a vial of morphine and a vial of Midazolam on Dec. 17, 2018, at the Leonardtown Volunteer Rescue Squad.
A paramedic at the time, Raley was accused in charging papers of entering a secured medical storage unit and its locked medical container, and breaking the lock seal on the container, at the volunteer rescue squad’s building on Lawrence Avenue in Leonardtown.
Sheriff’s Cpl. Dale Reppel stated that the lock box’s seal had been broken “and appeared to be glued back together,” and that the officer was told a surveillance video showed Raley enter the building and the secured storage area, according to charging documents at the time.
After initial police questioning about the matter, the court papers state, Raley “called a few days later advising he took the medications and had a substance abuse issue.”
In the most recent case, detectives from the Criminal Investigations Division responded and the investigation revealed that the seal on a medic box containing vials of fentanyl had been broken, according to a release from the sheriff’s office. Further investigation uncovered that the security packaging on fentanyl vials within the medic box had also been compromised.
In response to these findings, detectives conducted simultaneous investigations at all county medic units, which led to the discovery of additional tampering incidents involving multiple narcotics boxes.
On Tuesday, the county commissioners entered an emergency meeting about 20 minutes following their usual meeting and unanimously moved “to appoint a new EMS captain position for the department of emergency services utilizing existing funding sources.”
Raley had been appointed chief of Emergency Medical Services late last year after serving as acting chief since the beginning of 2023.
Questions regarding public health concerns about the case should be directed to the Department of Emergency Services. Representatives from the department will directly contact any individual whose care may have been impacted by this incident.
“Ensuring the safety and well-being of our patients is our top priority,” Utz said. “We are evaluating and updating our internal processes and will continue working closely with the state medical director, jurisdictional medical director and local health officer to address this issue and protect our community.”
The investigation is continuing in coordination with the Office of the State’s Attorney for St. Mary’s County.
Residents with information about the investigation are asked to contact Sgt. Kevin Meyer at 301-475-4200, ext. 8091, or Kevin.Meyer@stmaryscountymd.
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