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Jonathan Wysocki exits Kent County Circuit Court following sentencing May 28, 2015.

(Barton Deiters | MLive.com)

Jonathan Justin Wysocki

GRAND RAPIDS, MI - A former United Parcel Service employee has confessed to stealing $3,350 in prescription medication destined to be delivered to a veterans' hospital.

Jonathan Justin Wysocki, 28, confessed to taking methadone pills from the UPS hub in Wyoming on at least 10 different occasions between Sept. 1 and Oct. 17 that were destined for the Battle Creek Veterans Affairs Medical Center.

"I was in a very deep depression," Wysocki told Kent County Circuit Court Judge Dennis Leiber during a sentencing hearing last week. "I'm sorry."

Wysocki, a Comstock Park resident, said he stole the pills to pay off a debt owed to a man convicted in 2013 of maintaining a drug house.

The 2005 West Catholic High School graduate said the drug dealer threatened to go to the home of Wysocki's parents if he did not supply the stolen prescription narcotics.

Wyoming Police say surveillance cameras at the Clyde Park Avenue SW facility captured images of Wysocki taking the pills. Police found 137 methadone pills in Wysocki's personal vehicle, according to a probable cause affidavit in court files.

The Veterans Administration records showed more than $3,300 in pills missing from the UPS hub between Sept. 16 and Oct. 17.

Wysocki admitted his theft to police and then pleaded guilty to larceny and possession of a controlled substance on April 14. Wysocki worked for UPS for nearly eight years as a truck loader and safety representative.

In court on Thursday, May 28, Leiber asked Wysocki about the meaning of Memorial Day, which had occurred a few days prior and described the crime as a "tremendous insult" to those who served their country.

Leiber chose to sentence Wysocki, who has no previous criminal record, to 2-1/2 years of probation during which time he must repay $3,350 to the VA, or face jail time.

Wysocki is also ordered to perform 240 hours of community service at a veteran's facility within nine months, Leiber ordered.

Leiber refused to sentence Wysocki under a diversionary program that would keep him from having a conviction on his record.

"You're not some adolescent with a drug habit," Leiber said.

E-mail Barton Deiters: bdeiters@mlive.com and follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/GRPBarton or Facebook at facebook.com/bartondeiters.5