Vet Hospital Receptionist Used Dead Dog's Name To Obtain Opioids

COLUMBIA, MD —A former receptionist at a Howard County animal hospital has pleaded guilty to forging a veterinarian's credentials so she could fill prescriptions in her dead dog's name that was for thousands of opioid pills.

Rebecca Holder, 53, pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute and was sentenced to three years of supervised probation, drug and mental health treatment, and ordered to have no contact with the victim.

Dr. Timothy Cujdik, owner of Paws Up Veterinary practice in Columbia, told WBAL he was "stunned" by the plea deal Holder was given. He said she jeopardized his license and his three-decades-long reputation in the veterinary medical field.

Holder previously worked as a receptionist at Hunt Valley Animal Hospital where Cujdik worked. He even cared for her pets, including the dog whose name she used to fill prescriptions, court documents show.

But while Cujdik was opening his own practice and managing another hospital, Holder accessed his data and routinely forged his signature to obtain drugs. A Wegmans pharmacist discovered the fraud and alerted Cujdik, according to reports.

Investigators discovered that Holder had filled 78 prescriptions, totaling more than 8,000 pills, from at least six different pharmacies. She pleaded guilty to one count of her 15-count indictment under a plea deal decided the day before her trial.