The justice system of Santa Fe has convicted an employee of the Clemente Álvarez Emergency Hospital (HECA) for stealing medical supplies. Thus, the total number of individuals implicated in the case, which began in late 2024, has reached five.
Fernando Rodríguez, a 45-year-old employee of the hospital's pharmacy area, was sentenced to five months in prison after admitting to the theft of supplies in a abbreviated trial. The sentence was homologated by Judge Hebe Marcogliese following an agreement between prosecutor José Luis Caterina and defender Gonzalo Rucci, as reported by the Argentine News Agency.
Rodríguez was arrested in November 2025 after it was proven, according to the accusation, that he attempted to remove nine boxes of examination gloves from HECA. His arrest was made possible after the head of the hospital's Pharmacy accused him of the maneuver.
As the investigation progressed and the first operations were carried out, it was also determined that the accused had stolen approximately 200 intravenous catheters, medications, and even diclofenac pills, which were found inside a red Ford Fiesta parked on the hospital's premises.
In the last hours, a sentence was handed down to Rodríguez for the crimes of attempted theft, two counts of consummated theft, and failure to perform duties regarding custody of medicinal substances, all in real concurso, reported the outlet Rosario3.
The pharmacist's case is not the only one at HECA. In July 2025, four employees were convicted for stealing medical supplies at the end of 2024. Three of them received a sentence of 5 months and 15 days in prison, while the remaining one was given a 3-year suspended prison sentence.
