Thieves targeting surgical instruments

Thieves in North America and elsewhere are increasingly targeting surgical instruments and other hospital equipment and feeding an international black market, according to a report in the Montreal Gazette.

Most targeted are smaller surgical items such as endoscopes which can be carried out of hospitals easily and have a relatively high price - typically in the $25,000 to $35,000 range.  The thieves sell them on the black market for a few thousand dollars, typically in Africa and Eastern Europe.

A spate of thefts in US hospitals in 2010 has since been followed by two incidents in Montreal, Canada, while similar thefts have been reported in the UK, says the article.