Outrage as terminal cancer patient, 17, has her hospital bed ransacked while in surgery

A 17-year-old terminal cancer patient says her purse containing cash, jewelry and treasured photos of her late father was stolen while she underwent surgery at a San Diego hospital.

Sahara Morquecho, who hails from the Southern California city, was having an operation for Stage 4 pancreatic cancer at UC San Diego Health in Hillcrest when someone allegedly stole her purse, her sister, Kaleena Morquecho, told Fox 5.

The missing bag reportedly contained her wallet, ID, cash, jewelry and irreplaceable photos of her late father.

“We could not find it; we notified hospital staff, and no one really took it serious. They kind of said maybe it got lost in the linens; it’ll turn up. No incident report was filed, and I asked every single day,” Kaleena Morquecho said.

After Sahara Morquecho was well enough to check her phone on Thursday, she used Apple’s Find My app and saw her AirPods were at a home in Lemon Grove located in San Diego County.

The family contacted the San Diego County Sheriff’s Office, which sent a deputy to the address.

“They knocked on the door, and the lady’s car was there, but no answer. We ended up getting her lease agreement — the landlord wanted to help out,” Kaleena Morquecho explained.

According to Kaleena Morquecho, deputies looked up the woman’s name and found she allegedly had four prior arrests related to theft and burglary.

“We called the hospital, and she does in fact work at the hospital where my sister is,” she said.

In a statement to Fox 5, UC San Diego Health said, “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 noted the case has since been referred to the San Diego Police Department for investigation.

More than anything, Kaleena Morquecho said her sister just wants the photos of their late father back.

“I think that was one of the ways that she coped with the grief. She would look at the pictures, hold them,” she said. “She really misses her dad.”

Kaleena Morquecho said she never imagined someone would steal from a patient undergoing surgery.

“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?’” Kaleena Morquecho added.

“To find out her things got stolen from the house of sick, I think that’s so evil.”

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