Baldwin Man Allegedly Stole $78,000 In Drugs

BALDWIN, PA - A Baldwin resident has been charged in federal court with stealing federal drug evidence from the Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office. Matthew Ieraci, 29, was charged with with one count of theft concerning a program receiving federal benefits.

According to U.S. Attorney Scott Brady’s office, on multiple occasions in February 2017, Ieraci stole a total of approximately 52.45 grams of powder alprazolam from the medical examiner’s office where he worked as a lab scientist. Alprazolam is an active ingredient in the anti-anxiety drug Xanax.

Ieraci also allegedly stole the drug from a larger quantity of alprazolam that the United States Postal Inspection Service had submitted to the medical examiner’s office for analysis in connection with an ongoing federal drug-trafficking investigation.

Ieraci, the scientist assigned to analyze the evidence, had received training in proper evidence-handling techniques and was aware of the consequences of evidence tampering, including the possibility that such evidence would not be admissible at trial. The street value of the alprazolam Ieraci is alleged to have stolen was at least $78,675.

Ieraci faces up to 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine or both.

Image via Shutterstock.

Subscribe to Baldwin Patch for more local news and real-time alerts.