2 Men Arrested after Posing as Hospital Doctors in Separate Incidents

Two men, Ryan Epperson and Terrance King, were arrested in separate incidents for posing as doctors at hospitals. Epperson’s motivation for his crimes was drug addiction, while King’s decisions may have been related to his mental illness.

Two men, one in Texas and one in Tennessee, were arrested after posing as doctors in hospitals last week.

The situations surrounding the hospitals’ security breakdowns were very different, but all hospitals involved are evaluating their security procedures as a result.

23-year-old Terrance King was charged with unauthorized use of a vehicle and evading arrest after posing as a physician at Children’s Medical Center in Dallas on May 26.

When a nurse noticed King walk in and out of a patient’s room she asked him what he was doing and he claimed to be shadowing a doctor. But King was later unable to produce valid identification, and when confronted by hospital security he fled. King then stole an ambulance from Medical City Dallas Hospital and drove away with the lights on before crashing at an intersection nearby, according to inquisitor.com.

It was just the latest arrest for King, who has a sad history of mental illness, hunger and impersonating public safety personnel. In 2013 King was arrested twice for posing as a fire fighter at different departments in Texas. Last year after stealing a key card he entered Forest Park Medical Center through a restricted access door and posed as a doctor for a week to steal food, according to wfaa.com.

Meanwhile 26-year-old Ryan Epperson posed as a surgeon to gain access to narcotics at multiple hospitals in Chattanooga, Tennessee. When Epperson was arrested May 27 police found drugs from CHI Memorial Hospital, Erlanger Hospital and Parkridge Medical Center, according to wrcbtv.com.

Epperson, a correctional officer for the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office, entered a door for security personnel to gain access to narcotics at Erlanger Health System. At Parkridge Medical Center Epperson reportedly wore hospital scrubs to gain access to a radiology procedure lab where drugs were kept. In CHI Memorial Hospital Epperson took drugs from four crash carts in supervised areas.

Erlanger released a statement urging patients and staff to look for ID badges that are supposed to be visible at all times. Memorial Hospital has decided to stop using crash carts for certain drugs.

The Times Free Press reports that more drugs were found when police searched Epperson’s car and home. He is due in court next week.

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