
NEW HAVEN – A Waterbury woman who worked for Griffin Health Services was sentenced to three years probation for giving out fraudulent COVID-19 vaccination cards.
Zaya Powell, 25, will also pay a $5,000 fine and perform 200 hours of community service.
According to statements and court documents, Powell was a data entry specialist for the Griffin Health Services Corp. in Derby and would travel to various spots where Griffin was administering COVID-19 vaccinations. Prosecutors said Powell had access to paperwork and had access to the Vaccine Administration Management System (VAMS), a federal database used by health professionals and the public to track and log COVID-19 vaccinations.
Powell used her position to create vaccination cards saying the recipients had received COVID-19 vaccinations when, in fact, they had not. She also entered false data into the VAMS database.
Powell’s motivation for the crime isn’t known, according to prosecutors. Her defense lawyer’s paperwork makes no mention of any political or philosophical opposition to the COVID-19 vaccine.
Prosecutors noted she did not seem motivated by profit, having only once accepted a $100 payment for producing the cards. She made about 14 in total between August and October of 2021.
One of the first fake cards was for a relative who worked at Waterbury Hospital. That person’s mother worked at the Southbury Training School, an institution for people with developmental disabilities. Three other workers at the school requested and received fake vaccination cards produced by Powell.
In a sentencing memo, the U.S. Attorney’s Office points out that at the time employees at the Southbury Training School were mandated by the government to receive COVID-19 shots in an effort to protect vulnerable people at the facility.
Powell’s “actions needlessly exposed a particularly vulnerable group of people – many of whom were unable to protect or speak for themselves — in the care of the State of Connecticut,” prosecutors said.
Powell’s lawyer noted she took full responsibility for her actions. He noted her background includes numerous examples of volunteer work, including travelling to South America to help disadvantaged communities.
Powell faced up to five years in federal prison along with a maximum fine of $250,000.
However, prosecutors noted she cooperated with the investigation, expressed remorse for her crime and does not seem likely to commit another crime.
She was formally sentenced to probation on Nov. 4.