Sacramento Drug Tester Accused Of Selling Urine
SACRAMENTO (CBS13) ― A local medical clinic worker is accused selling his urine to drug users so they could use his urine to pass a drug test. He appeared in a Sacramento court today.
Rudy Duarte kept silent as he left federal court, where he's been charged in connection with selling his urine sample for money.
"We know he was getting money anywhere from perhaps $20 to $100," said Steven Lapham, Asst. U.S. Attorney.
Authorities say Duarte had the perfect set up at the effort: a medical center hired by state, federal, and county probation offices.
"The whole criminal justice depends on the honesty of the individuals employed by it and that includes drug tester," said Lapham.
His job as a drug tester at "The Effort" clinic in Sacramento was to make sure probationers didn't try to cheat the system.
The probationer would go into the bathroom with the drug tester to get a sample…and in fact, what would happen, is Mr. Duarte would provide his own urine," said Lapham.
Duarte then allegedly certified that the sample was the parolees, and sent it to a testing facility in Richmond, Virigina where it would come back-drug free.
Olivia Box goes to "The Effort" for drug testing and knows what would happen if she tested positive for drugs.
"I would probably go back to state prison," said Box.
That's why authorities believe Duarte kept criminals from going back to jail.
When we asked Duarte about the allegations, he responded with "no comment."
(© MMVIII, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
SACRAMENTO (CBS13) ― A local medical clinic worker is accused selling his urine to drug users so they could use his urine to pass a drug test. He appeared in a Sacramento court today.
Rudy Duarte kept silent as he left federal court, where he's been charged in connection with selling his urine sample for money.
"We know he was getting money anywhere from perhaps $20 to $100," said Steven Lapham, Asst. U.S. Attorney.
Authorities say Duarte had the perfect set up at the effort: a medical center hired by state, federal, and county probation offices.
"The whole criminal justice depends on the honesty of the individuals employed by it and that includes drug tester," said Lapham.
His job as a drug tester at "The Effort" clinic in Sacramento was to make sure probationers didn't try to cheat the system.
The probationer would go into the bathroom with the drug tester to get a sample…and in fact, what would happen, is Mr. Duarte would provide his own urine," said Lapham.
Duarte then allegedly certified that the sample was the parolees, and sent it to a testing facility in Richmond, Virigina where it would come back-drug free.
Olivia Box goes to "The Effort" for drug testing and knows what would happen if she tested positive for drugs.
"I would probably go back to state prison," said Box.
That's why authorities believe Duarte kept criminals from going back to jail.
When we asked Duarte about the allegations, he responded with "no comment."
(© MMVIII, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
