A sales agent for Organogenesis Inc. is accused of stealing some $350,000 worth of skin grafts made by the Massachusetts regenerative medicine company, according to news reports.
Mercy Philadelphia Hospital accused Gary Dudek of the theft after an audit exposed the missing grafts, according to the New York Daily News.
Police detectives allegedly discovered an open purchase order that allowed Dudek to pilfer the grafts, the newspaper reported. Police claim that Dudek was twice caught on security cameras taking grafts from the hospital and putting them in his car, according to the report.
Dudek was arrested May 27 and charged with theft and records tampering, according to the Daily News.
Although Dudek himself declined to comment, his lawyer said the hospital should have pursued a civil case instead of criminal charges.
"If Mercy Hospital has suffered losses and they can be deemed to be as a result of Mr. Dudek’s actions then perhaps a civil suit could have been initiated," Eugene Tinari told NBC Philadelphia. "But to take this into the criminal arena against a man who has been nothing but hard-working and law-abiding his entire life is a bit draconian, in my view," he added.