A grand jury indicted Monroe County’s top unelected official Thursday in connection with an ongoing investigation into stolen drugs from the Florida Keys air ambulance service.
Roman Gastesi is charged with one count of official misconduct, a third-degree felony punishable by up to five years in prison, the Monroe County State Attorney’s Office said in a statement Friday.
“The charge stems from alleged actions that took place between August 11 and November 17, 2022, during which Mr. Gastesi is accused of knowingly and intentionally obstructing, delaying, or preventing the communication of information relating to the commission of a felony that directly affected the government entity he served,” said Steven Torrence, the State Attorney’s Office spokesman.
Gastesi, who has worked for the county for 16 years, could not immediately be reached for comment.
The indictment comes a week after the grand jury charged the county’s Fire Rescue captain, Andrea Thompson, who heads the Trauma Star helicopter program and the county’s medical director, Dr. Sandra Schwemmer.
They are accused of covering up the theft of medications from Trauma Star by the chopper program’s former chief flight nurse, Lynda Rusinowski, in the summer of 2022.
Thompson was charged with two counts of official misconduct, one count of providing false information to law enforcement, two counts of evidence tampering, three counts of witness tampering and one count of altering patient records.
Schwemmer is charged with one count of official misconduct, one count of providing false information to law enforcement and one count of altering patient records.
Both women have been released on bond — $250,000 and $100,000 respectively.
Judge Mark Willson issued a warrant for Gastesi’s arrest and set bond at $250,000, Torrence said.
“This case, like the recent indictments of Dr. Schwemmer and Andrea Thompson, demonstrates our office’s unwavering commitment to holding public servants accountable for their actions,” Monroe County State Attorney Dennis Ward said in a prepared statement. “Mr. Gastesi’s alleged actions reflect a pattern of misconduct that affects our community’s trust in government, and we are fully committed to ensuring justice is served.”
This is a developing story and will be updated as more information becomes available.
