Farmacista suspended for a year after confessing to stealing thousands of pills to send to Sierra Leone
A pharmacist who claimed to want to "help people" has been suspended for a year after admitting to having stolen thousands of pills to send to Sierra Leone. Sylvester Vinkabb, despite declaring his good intentions, took more than 16,000 anxiety medication pills, along with over 100 liters of codeine and approximately 357 liters of Phenergan elixir from the pharmacy where he worked.
Vinkabb claimed to be motivated by an "obsession to help people," as he sent medications to his country of origin. He maintained his innocence during a disciplinary hearing, despite admitting to having sent the medications back to Sierra Leone.
The pharmacist confessed to having been taking drugs from the patient returns containers since 2022. He was exposed after a spreadsheet highlighting discrepancies was presented to the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPC).
Vinkabb claimed that the amount of drugs taken was not significant and that he was merely collecting old, unused medications and putting them into a separate "Africa box" for shipping. He insisted that the packages were sent to his mother’s house for appropriate distribution and were not sold.
The GPC found Vinkabb guilty of all six charges against him, stating that he was clearly aware of his actions. They noted that other staff members knew about the "Africa box" but were unaware of its destination, and that Vinkabb had taken steps to avoid detection. Vinkabb apologized fully, admitting that his behavior might have put patients at risk.
The council ruled that while Vinkabb’s dishonesty was not motivated by financial gain, it was a "very serious breach" of professional standards. Despite the lack of financial gain and low risk of repeat behavior, the council suspended Vinkabb’s license for one year.
