Destin Middle School health tech charged with stealing meds from students

DESTIN, Fla. — A school health technician at Destin Middle School was charged December 1 with stealing prescription medication from several students and, in some instances, replacing their medications with aspirin or Aleve, the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office has announced.

Makayla Crandall, 27, of Niceville, has been charged with three counts of grand theft of a controlled substance, five counts of child neglect, and one count of failure to maintain narcotics records, the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office (OCSO) said in its statement.

According to the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office (OCSO), in late September, a child who visits Crandall daily for medication administration reportedly noticed a difference in the color and imprint of her pills and mentioned it to her mother. Her mother, in turn, said she had observed distinct differences in her child’s behavior.

After it was reported, the OCSO School Resource Officer and school employees forced entry into the medication cabinet and conducted an audit. The audit is alleged to have revealed at least 110 missing amphetamine/dexmethylphenidate pills from at least five students. One bottle reportedly contained an ALEVE pill, and another had seven pills, later identified as aspirin.

The investigation reportedly revealed that around the same September/October timeframe, two other parents said they had become concerned after noticing a resurfacing of behavioral issues with their children. During the audit, one of those student’s medication bottles was found to contain aspirin, which the parent says the student is not to be administered, the OCSO said.

According to the OCSO, the mother of a third victim said she dropped off a bottle of Adderall for her daughter on September 29 but had to take her to the emergency room on October 4 due to her erratic, unusual behavior.

Investigators say Crandall had sole possession of the key to the medicine cabinet. The OCSO said she claimed to have a valid prescription for Adderall, but the agency said no prescription could be found in law enforcement databases. Crandall was also unable to explain how student medications were missing or had been switched out, the OCSO said.

According to the statement, Crandall was hired in July 2022.