San Jose fire captain arraigned for narcotics theft
San Jose Fire Captain appears in court on charges he stole narcotics from his own department
A San Jose Fire Captain has been charged with stealing narcotics from the department where he worked. 45-year old Mark Moalem waived his arraignment today on charges of burglary, possession of a controlled substance and being under the influence of a controlled substance. It's a case that authorities say impacted drug kits at 17 different fire stations.
SAN JOSE, Calif. - A San Jose Fire Department captain was charged with stealing narcotics meant for emergency patients. He will be arraigned in court on Monday afternoon.
A 22-year veteran of the department, 45-year-old Mark Moalem is alleged to have tampered with and taken vials of painkillers and sedatives from department fire engines. He was arrested last month for burglary at a fire station, endangering a child and narcotics violations.
If found guilty, Moalem faces time in prison.
"The community puts their lives in the hands of first responders during emergencies," Santa Clara County District Attorney Jeff Rosen said in a statement. "There is no excuse for violating the trust and safety of Santa Clara County residents."
Suspicions and searches
What we know:
A search warrant of Moalm's residence revealed a large quantity of needles, six SJFD vial caps for morphine, four SJFD vial caps of midazolam and four bags of IV saline solution, of which three appeared to have been used.
Moalem came under suspicion earlier this year, on April 14, when firefighters at Station 4, off Leigh Avenue, reported that a vial of morphine had been tampered with. A paramedic also reported that morphine from another firehouse had been administered to a patient earlier that same day, and appeared to have no effect on their pain.
An audit concluded that vials of morphine and midazolam had been tampered with at 17 of the department's 34 fire stations. It appeared that in some cases, the drugs had been removed from the vials, which were refilled with another substance. The audit also revealed a box of narcotic vials was missing from a fire truck.
The San Jose Police Department tracked Moalem's vehicle using a license plate reader, which showed someone matching his description was driving the car in the vicinity of the station during the period the box of narcotics is alleged to have been stolen.
Further investigation revealed Moalem was seen at Station 29 on April 8 of this year, in between two fire trucks, near where a box of narcotics was stored. He was off duty at the time.
Previous arrests
The backstory:
A release from the Santa Clara County District Attorney's office states Moalem was arrested in 2013 for "possession of a controlled substance and under the influence of an opiate." He was employed by the SJFD at the time. In that case he received a deferred judgment, which required him to submit to random drug tests for several years. He was also investigated by the state's Emergency Medical Services Agency, which could have resulted in the revocation of his paramedic license without fulfilling several conditions during a five-year probation.
He was also suspected in a 2023 incident when a bottle of morphine was stolen from a fire station.