The former Nebraska State Patrol evidence technician at the center of a plot to steal kilos of drugs she was meant to safeguard pleaded guilty Tuesday for her role in the conspiracy to put the marijuana and cocaine, some laced with fentanyl, back on the streets.
Anna Idigima, 37, will face a minimum of 20 years and up to life in federal prison at her sentencing set for May.
Appearing by video from the Saline County jail, she admitted she used her access at the State Patrol to get the drugs, then sold them with George Weaver Jr., her boyfriend.
Weaver has pleaded not guilty and is awaiting trial.
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At the hearing, Assistant U.S. Attorney Sara Fullerton offered the most detailed account yet of the scheme and the investigation that uncovered it.
She said if the case against Idigima had gone to trial, the jury would have heard about how Idigima, then an employee at the State Patrol's storage evidence room in Lincoln, "began stealing drugs that were being held in completed State Patrol cases, which were awaiting destruction orders."
Fullerton said Idigima was providing the drugs to Weaver, who was selling them in Lincoln.
"Video surveillance from the State Patrol evidence storage facility shows Ms. Idigima opening sealed boxes, taking items from those boxes, putting them in garbage bags and loading those bags into her personal vehicle on several occasions between June 16, 2021, and Aug. 12, 2021," the prosecutor said.
She said the Lincoln/Lancaster County Narcotics Task Force audited storage areas where Idigima had access and, among other things, found 154 pounds of marijuana, 19 pounds of cocaine and 6 pounds of fentanyl missing.
At the time, Idigima had been a State Patrol employee for more than a decade and just two years earlier had received a state honor for her leadership.
Fullerton said in August 2021, investigators searched Weaver's Snapchat account and found a photo of several large bags of marijuana on a bed, one with a red piece of evidence tape, consistent with the evidence tape used by the State Patrol.
She said the sale of fentanyl-laced cocaine led to the overdose of a Nebraska City couple at their home on Aug. 4, 2021, and to a man in Lincoln on Aug. 18. Two of the three had to be revived with CPR and all three needed Narcan and were treated at hospitals in Lincoln and Omaha.
Fullerton said they had bought the drugs in Lincoln from separate people who told investigators they got the drugs from Weaver.
She said when one of the sellers was arrested in August 2021 with an ounce of cocaine and fentanyl he told law enforcement it was some of the "bad stuff" that was causing overdoses.
The prosecutor described other deals, too. One where a woman bought 50 ecstasy pills from Idigima and Weaver in July 2021, sending the money to Idigima's Cash App account. And another where a woman traded 4 ounces of methamphetamine to Weaver for 500 M30 pills and Idigima got the pills from a bag in her purse.
Then, Fullerton said, Idigima tried to send a letter from the jail to an inmate at another correctional center last month, identifying herself as Anna Idigima. In it she wrote: "You may have heard about the case. I was the evidence tech from the Nebraska State Patrol who took $1.2 million in drugs and sold them."
In the end, U.S. Magistrate Judge Cheryl Zwart asked Idigima how she pleaded to conspiring to distribute marijuana, cocaine and fentanyl resulting in serious injury to three people.
"Guilty," Idigima said.
25 most commonly used recreational drugs in America
America's vices: Alcohol, tobacco and more
From alcohol to cigarettes, most adults have tried some form of recreational drug. Fewer people have experimented with prescription medication for recreational reasons, but certain areas of the country are experiencing a serious problem with . Other drugs like cocaine and LSD, are used sporadically among adults in the U.S.
Using data from the , the experts at , a health data site, ranked the 25 most commonly used recreational drugs. The substances are ordered by the increasing percentage of people age 12 and over who used the drug recreationally in 2015. In the case of a tie, the drug with a higher classification by the (DEA) is ranked higher.
To collect this data, SAMHDA conducts the annual National Survey on Drug Use and Health, in which they use of illicit drugs, alcohol and tobacco in the U.S. population aged 12 or older. It is important to note that this data only includes recreational use of drugs, not proper medical use.
Drugs that are legal, alcohol and tobacco, have the highest recreational use. According to the survey, nearly one in five people over the age of 12 also used marijuana in 2015. As the drug becomes in more states, recreational use is likely to increase. Other Schedule I drugs (drugs determined to have no medical benefit by the DEA) including heroin and DMT had a recreational prevalence rate of less than 1 percent in 2015.
Note: Not all images in slideshow depict the exact drugs.
#25. Ketamine
Recreational use prevalence (2015): 0.17 percent
Drug category: Hallucinogen
DEA Schedule: III
Common forms: Liquid, powder
#24. Oxymorphone
Recreational use prevalence (2015): 0.18 percent
Drug category: Opioid
DEA Schedule: II
Common forms: Tablet
#23. DMT
Recreational use prevalence (2015): 0.2 percent
Drug category: Hallucinogen
DEA Schedule: I
Common forms: Powder, crystal
#22. Carisoprodol (Soma)
Recreational use prevalence (2015): 0.21 percent
Drug category: Tranquilzer
DEA Schedule: IV
Common forms: Pill
#21. Methadone
Recreational use prevalence (2015): 0.23 percent
Drug category: Opioid
DEA Schedule: II
Common forms: Tablet, dispersible tablet, liquid
#20. Lorazepam (Ativan)
Recreational use prevalence (2015): 0.33 percent
Drug category: Sedative
DEA Schedule: IV
Common forms: Pill, capsule, liquid
#19. Morphine
Recreational use prevalence (2015): 0.37 percent
Drug category: Opioid
DEA Schedule: II
Common forms: Tablet, liquid, capsule, suppository
#18. Buprenorphine
Recreational use prevalence (2015): 0.38 percent
Drug category: Opioid
DEA Schedule: III
Common forms: Pill
#17. Heroin
Recreational use prevalence (2015): 0.39 percent
Drug category: Opioid
DEA Schedule: I
Common forms: Powder, tar
#16. Zolpidem (Ambien)
Recreational use prevalence (2015): 0.45 percent
Drug category: Sedative
DEA Schedule: IV
Common forms: Pill, capsule, liquid
#15. Diazepam (Valium)
Recreational use prevalence (2015): 0.54 percent
Drug category: Tranquilzer
DEA Schedule: IV
Common forms: Pill, capsule, liquid
#14. Clonazepam (Klonopin)
Recreational use prevalence (2015): 0.6 percent
Drug category: Tranquilzer
DEA Schedule: IV
Common forms: Pill
#13. Methylphenidate (Ritalin)
Recreational use prevalence (2015): 0.61 percent
Drug category: Stimulant
DEA Schedule: II
Common forms: Liquid, tablet, capsule
#12. Methamphetamine
Recreational use prevalence (2015): 0.68 percent
Drug category: Stimulant
DEA Schedule: II
Common forms: Powder, pill, crystal
#11. Tramadol
Recreational use prevalence (2015): 0.77 percent
Drug category: Opioid
DEA Schedule: IV
Common forms: Pill
#10. LSD
Recreational use prevalence (2015): 1.07 percent
Drug category: Hallucinogen
DEA Schedule: I
Common forms: Tablet, capsule, liquid, paper
#9. MDMA (Ecstasy/Molly)
Recreational use prevalence (2015): 1.5 percent
Drug category: Hallucinogen
DEA Schedule: I
Common forms: Tablet, capsule, liquid
#8. Alprazolam (Xanax)
Recreational use prevalence (2015): 2.05 percent
Drug category: Tranquilzer
DEA Schedule: IV
Common forms: Pill, capsule, liquid
#7. Oxycodone (OxyContin)
Recreational use prevalence (2015): 2.05 percent
Drug category: Opioid
DEA Schedule: II
Common forms: Capsule, liquid, tablet
#6. Cocaine
Recreational use prevalence (2015): 2.19 percent
Drug category: Stimulant
DEA Schedule: II
Common forms: Powder, crystal
#5. Amphetamine (Adderall)
Recreational use prevalence (2015): 2.8 percent
Drug category: Stimulant
DEA Schedule: II
Common forms: Tablet, capsule
#4. Hydrocodone (Vicodin)
Recreational use prevalence (2015): 3.17 percent
Drug category: Opioid
DEA Schedule: II
Common forms: Pill
#3. Marijuana
Recreational use prevalence (2015): 17.68 percent
Drug category: Depressant
DEA Schedule: I
Common forms: Plant, resin, oil
#2. Tobacco
Recreational use prevalence (2015): 31.1 percent
Drug category: Stimulant
DEA Schedule: N/A
Common forms: Cigarette, cigar, bidi, hookah, snuff, chew
#1. Alcohol
Recreational use prevalence (2015): 61.42 percent
Drug category: Depressant
DEA Schedule: N/A
Common forms: Liquid