Chicago pharmacist Tang-Tang Zhao made around $1,250 selling official COVID vaccination cards on eBay, federal prosecutors say. He could now face the loss of his license—and a long prison sentence. The 34-year-old has been indicted on 12 counts of theft of government property, NPR reports. Prosecutors say he sold the CDC cards for around $10 each. He allegedly sold a total of 125 cards to 11 different buyers. The Washington Post reports that it spoke to Zhao in April about vaccination cards being sold by the "asianjackson" eBay account. He acknowledged it was his account but denied selling the cards, claiming he had been having problems with his password. If found guilty, he could be sentenced to up to 10 years in prison on each count. The Post reports that records show Zhao worked for Walgreen's.
Walgreen's says Zhao hasn't worked for the company since April and it is cooperating with the federal investigation, ABC7 reports. He has had a pharmacist license in Illinois since 2018 but a hearing on its status is set for Monday. Federal authorities say they will "vigorously investigate" any crime that leads to a distrust of vaccinations or vaccination status. "Stealing and selling COVID-19 vaccination cards is inexcusable and will not be tolerated," Special Agent in Charge Lamont Pugh III of the Department of Health and Human Services' Chicago region watchdog said in a statement. "Fraudsters who engage in such unlawful conduct undermine efforts to address the pandemic and profit at the public’s expense." (More coronavirus stories.)