Crime
'Medical terrorist': Texas anesthesiologist caught on video allegedly tampering intravenous bags
Dr. Raynaldo Ortiz, a Texas anesthesiologist, is accused of tampering with intravenous bags at a Dallas surgery center, resulting in the death of a fellow physician and multiple cardiac emergencies
September 21, 2022 8:41pm
Updated: September 22, 2022 9:05am
A Texas anesthesiologist is accused of tampering with intravenous bags at a Dallas surgery center, resulting in the death of a fellow physician and multiple cardiac emergencies. In court Monday, prosecutors referred to Dr. Raynaldo Ortiz, Jr. as a "medical terrorist."
At the hearing, a federal judge denied Ortiz's request to be released from jail without bail, KDFW reported.
Ortiz was arrested on Sept. 14 and faces federal charges of tampering with a consumer product that caused death and intentional drug adulteration. The charges stem from alleged incidents in mid-August when Ortiz worked at Baylor Scott and White Surgicare in North Dallas.
Authorities allege Ortiz tampered with several intravenous IVs, resulting in the death of a Dallas physician.
On June 21, Dr. Melanie Kaspar took home one of the contaminated IV bags to rehydrate during an illness and suffered a fatal heart attack.
Some of the bags were found to contain Bupivacaine, a drug used to treat localized pain that, when used improperly, can cause cardiac arrest.
Prosecutors said during Monday's hearing that Ortiz turned those IV bags into "poison bombs" that "exploded on unsuspecting patients," KDFW reports.
They also submitted surveillance video in court that they claim shows Ortiz placing an IV bag on a heater outside an operating room. It was used moments afterward, leading to a patient having a cardiac emergency.
Before placing the bag in the warmer, Ortiz appears to look around, scanning back and forth across the hallway.
Prosecutors say another video shows Ortiz hiding an IV bag behind a paper folder on his arm before exchanging it for another bag.
An hour after that footage was shot, prosecutors allege a patient suffered medical complications, according to KDFW.
Ortiz has been a physician since 1991. He has not yet pleaded guilty to the charges against him, WFAA reported.He was previously sanctioned by the Texas Medical Board after a patient nearly died under his care during a procedure in 2020.
WXAS-TV and WFAA reported that Ortiz spent 25 days in jail after being convicted of animal cruelty in 2016. The charge stemmed from an incident in which he shot his neighbor's dog with a pellet gun.
