A theft bust at UMC last year has uncovered what may have been a multi-million dollar theft ring.
Investigators raided three different locations Wednesday. No one has been arrested but Eyewitness News has learned that investigators seized thousands of dollars in hospital equipment from a former UMC employee's storage unit.
When investigators began looking into allegations that UMC hospital CEO Lacy Thomas was awarding contracts to his friends for work at the hospital, they got more than they bargained for.
Detectives learned of a separate scam in which facilities department supervisors and employees were stealing from the hospital. Now, it appears there was an even bigger theft ring happening at the same time.
Sources say investigators served three search warrants Wednesday. One, on a storage unit located on south Durango. The owner of the unit is Sime Perkov, a former carpenter at the hospital.
Investigators say Perkov and former UMC plumber Peter Panagos may have been involved in a massive theft ring -- stealing millions of dollars of hospital equipment and supplies.
Last November, police charged the men and two former facilities department supervisors with theft, burglary and grand larceny for stealing from the hospital.
Now police say a fifth man, Tom Rose, may have been working with Perkov and Panagos in a separate hospital scam.
Rose owns Paradise Plumbing. Sources say $2 million may have been funneled through his company for plumbing work at UMC he did not do under contract. Even though he was contracted to do some work, the hospital has it's own plumbers.
Rose's business, along with Panagos' home, was also searched Wednesday. Insiders say the storage unit was filled with items from the hospital -- including plumbing supplies, hundreds of tools, countertops and medical equipment.
It's not clear at this time if the storage unit was cleared out by investigators.
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