A 17-year-old terminal cancer patient alleges her purse was stolen from her hospital room at UC San Diego Health while she was undergoing surgery for Stage 4 pancreatic cancer.
Sahara Morquecho, from San Diego, was in surgery at the Hillcrest facility when her purse, reportedly containing her wallet, identification, cash, jewelry, and photographs of her deceased father, went missing. Her sister, Kaleena Morquecho, told Fox 5 San Diego that hospital staff initially dismissed their concerns, suggesting the purse might have been lost in linens and would turn up.
No incident report was filed by the hospital staff, according to Kaleena Morquecho. After Sahara Morquecho was well enough to use her phone, she utilized Apple's Find My app, which indicated the location of her AirPods at a residence in Lemon Grove, a San Diego County community.
The family contacted the San Diego County Sheriff’s Office. A deputy reportedly visited the address, but no one answered the door. The landlord provided the lease agreement for the property. According to Kaleena Morquecho, deputies identified the resident and found she allegedly had four prior arrests for theft and burglary. The sister also stated that the woman in question is an employee at the hospital where Sahara Morquecho was receiving treatment.
UC San Diego Health provided a statement to Fox 5, saying, "Privacy laws prevent us from commenting on whether any individual is or has been a patient at UC San Diego Health. We also are unable to comment on matters that may involve personnel issues or ongoing investigations. We understand that situations involving a patient’s personal belongings can be deeply upsetting, and we take any concerns regarding the safety and security of patients and visitors very seriously."
The San Diego County Sheriff’s Office has since referred the case to the San Diego Police Department for further investigation.
Sahara Morquecho's sister emphasized that the sentimental value of the stolen photos of their father is particularly distressing for the patient. "She really misses her dad," Kaleena Morquecho said, adding that the photos were a way for Sahara to cope with her grief. Kaleena Morquecho expressed disbelief that someone would steal from a patient during surgery, stating, "You think someone is safe; you think their belongings are safe when they are in a surgery. We are not thinking about, ‘Is someone going to steal from us?’ To find out her things got stolen from the house of sick, I think that’s so evil."