A Hernando County teacher is accused of stealing prescription medication from two other teachers.
Catherine Mae Ferraro, 42, is facing charges of grand theft and possession of a controlled substance. Officials say she teaches fifth grade at Explorer K-8 in Spring Hill.
According to the Hernando County Sheriff’s Office, a school resource deputy was contacted by two teachers, who wanted to report that items, including medication, were missing from their handbags.
A fifth-grade teacher said 10 pills of Alprozolam, which is also known as Xanax, were missing from her bag, which was locked in her classroom while the classroom was empty.
A second-grade teacher reported that several items, including medication, were missing from her handbag, which had also been stored in her classroom. Officials said the teacher reported those thefts had been happening since the beginning of the school year.
Deputies say Ferraro was identified by the victims and witnesses as the suspect. She was taken into custody, and post-Miranda, admitted to taking the prescription medication from both teachers, deputies said.
Ferraro told deputies some of the stolen pills were still in her truck, which was in the school parking lot, the report said. She escorted deputies to the truck so evidence could be collected.
Ferraro was booked into the Hernando County Detention Center on $6,000 bond. The case remains under investigation.