A Fairfield pharmacist has admitted to stealing thousands of prescription pills from his own pharmacy, pleading guilty to charges of prescription drug diversion on March 27, 2025.
According to public court documents, Bryan Paul Vander Linden, 42, acknowledged that between June 2022 and at least November 2023, he illegally obtained prescription medications from Summit Pharmacy of Iowa, which he owned and operated. Prosecutors say Vander Linden acquired the drugs for personal use by ordering but not reporting them in the pharmacy’s inventory, taking them from stock, or retrieving pills from the controlled substance collection bin.
Authorities report that Vander Linden obtained more than 3,500 oxycodone and hydrocodone pills—both classified as Schedule II controlled substances—along with more than 400 carisoprodol pills, a Schedule IV muscle relaxant.
Vander Linden is set to be sentenced on July 28, 2025. He faces a potential prison sentence of up to four years, though a federal district court judge will ultimately determine the punishment, taking into account the United States Sentencing Guidelines and other legal factors.
United States Attorney Richard D. Westphal of the Southern District of Iowa announced the guilty plea. The case is being investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration.