EXETER - An FBI affidavit paints David Kwiatkowski as a self-centered habitual liar whose unusual behavior at work raised suspicions among co-workers at Exeter Hospital and other places where he's worked.

Labeled a “serial infector” by authorities, the 32-year-old Michigan native who first arrived at Exeter Hospital as a traveling medical technician in April 2011 and landed a full-time job in its cardiac catheterization lab in October left a trail of clues that investigators say points to a drug abuser who used the hospital to feed his addiction – and in the end infected at least 30 patients with his strain of hepatitis C.

In an interview with police on July 2, Kwiatkowski, who is accused of abusing drug-filled syringes meant for patients, said he had “lied to a lot of people” and “fabricated my life.” However, he denies ever abusing drugs, saying his biggest lies were that he had played baseball at the University of Michigan and that his fiancée had died, according to an affidavit by FBI Special Agent Marcie DiFede of the Portsmouth office.

Kwiatkowski also claimed that he's scared of needles and that he is “not a shooter.”

When he was asked how patients had become infected with hepatitis C at Exeter Hospital, Kwiatkowski replied, “You know, I'm more concerned about myself, my own well being.” He added, “That's all I'm really concerned about and I've learned here to just worry about myself and that's all I really care about now,” the affidavit said.

A far-reaching investigation

The criminal investigation into Kwiatkowski is just beginning to unfold as authorities piece together his work history that began in Michigan where he worked in the health care industry. Records show that he became a traveling medical technician working in catheterization labs beginning in 2007 and worked in as many as six different states, the affidavit said.

Traveling technicians work for a few months in a medical facility to fill a temporary staffing shortage and then move on.

On Wednesday – the day before he was charged with obtaining controlled substances by fraud and tampering with a consumer product related to the Exeter case - the FBI learned that Kwiatkowski was allegedly involved in a drug diversion incident while working as a contract employee at a hospital in another state in 2008. In that case, Kwiatkowski entered an operating room, placed a syringe in his pants, and then left, the affidavit said.

An investigation showed that a syringe was missing and replaced by one with a liquid other than the drug Fentanyl, the affidavit said, and he was later found with three empty syringes with Fentanyl labels on him. A drug test found Fentanyl and opiates in his urine, the affidavit said.

A supervisor at another hospital told investigators that he was fired for falsifying a timesheet, the affidavit said. Needles were found in a restroom outside a cardiac catheterization lab at one hospital on at least two occasions, but no more were found after he left, a supervisor reported.

Staff members at other hospitals where Kwiatkowski worked told investigators that he often made up stories about himself. He claimed he played baseball at the University of Michigan and that his fiancée had died tragically, but later admitted they were lies. He also made numerous claims of having cancer, but authorities found no record of the diagnosis.

The affidavit said Kwiatkowski tested positive for hepatitis C in June 2010, and while he informed an Exeter Hospital employee in May that he was recently diagnosed, he told others about his disease in 2011.

Kwiatkowski lived in Exeter while working at the hospital, but authorities believe he left town and was living in hotels in recent weeks. On July 13, police in Marlborough, Mass., found an intoxicated Kwiatkowski in a hotel room where he “may have been attempting to harm himself,” the affidavit said. He was brought to a medical facility for treatment.

Worker displayed 'unusual behavior'

The affidavit said Kwiatkowski was employed at Exeter Hospital as a “scrub technician” who assisted in the cardiac catheterization lab but didn't have access to a secured machine that dispenses drugs like Fentanyl – a drug more powerful than morphine - and Versed. In his position, Kwiatkowski did not administer drugs to patients and would have no reason to possess a syringe with Fentanyl or a needle used in the procedure, the affidavit said.

“Interviews with multiple employees at Exeter Hospital have suggested that Kwiatkowski engaged in behavior that was unusual and is consistent with the activities of an individual who is using or abusing controlled substances,” the affidavit said.

One Exeter employee told investigators that she recalled observing Kwiatkowski sweating and having bloodshot eyes. She thought he was “on something” and “overly medicated” and in no condition to care for patients, so she complained to the director of the cardiac catheterization lab, the affidavit said.

The director acknowledged receiving the complaint and told authorities that he called Kwiatkowski into his office and also noticed his bloodshot eyes. Kwiatkowski claimed he was grieving the loss of his aunt and he was sent home. Investigators later learned that there were no recent deaths in Kwiatkowski's family.

Other employees told similar stories of how Kwiatkowski would often sweat profusely and his eyes would appear red. One recalled seeing white foam around Kwiatkowski's mouth.

Syringes labeled “Fentanyl” were also found in a public restroom outside the lab, and when an employee discussed it with Kwiatkowski, he became “upset and claimed that the employee had accused him of stealing drugs and was trying to get him fired,” the affidavit said.

A phlebotomist who drew his blood on May 30 told authorities that she observed “fresh track marks” consistent with intravenous drug use, though he denies having track marks.

In a June interview with investigators in Michigan, Kwiatkowski's parents told agents that their son had Crohn's disease and took “a lot” of prescription medications, but that they weren't aware of any illegal drug use. They also said their son had issues with alcohol, anger and depression and were aware that he had been diagnosed with hepatitis C at least a year ago. They said he told them he became infected when he was pricked by a needle at work, the affidavit said.

A woman who once lived with Kwiatkowski in Exeter also told authorities that she found needles in his laundry several times and one under his bed, the affidavit said.

Kwiatkowski's supervisor in the cardiac catheterization lab described how he would bring lead aprons to employees in the procedure room even when he wasn't assigned to the case and would set them down next to the machine that dispenses the drugs, the affidavit said.

“The supervisor speculated that upon setting the lead apron on this table, Kwiatkowski may have been able to take a syringe containing Fentanyl and replace it with a tainted syringe containing saline or another substance. The supervisor also said there would be no reason for a technician to be in the nursing area where the medications are located. He noted that it was unusual for an employee to bring in lead aprons for other employees,” the affidavit said.

Workers also told investigators that Kwiatkowski would also show up in the lab at times when he wasn't supposed to be involved in a procedure or wasn't supposed to be working, according to the affidavit.

On June 23, about a month after the hepatitis outbreak became public, a family member of Kwiatkowski called Exeter police expressing concern that he might be suicidal and that he had a gun, the affidavit said. He was found at a hotel in Boxborough, Mass., with prescription bottles in his room and was brought to a hospital for evaluation.

During a search of his vehicle, investigators said they found an empty syringe labeled “Fentanyl,” which is believed to have come from the hospital. Several needles were also found, the affidavit said. Kwiatkowski claimed that the syringe in his vehicle wasn't his and that it was planted by a co-worker, the affidavit said.

In an interview with investigators on June 13, Kwiatkowski admitted that he had hepatitis C and told about how the diagnosis was a “time bomb” and that he didn't know he was infected “until a couple of weeks ago.” He denied ever abusing drugs meant for patients and claimed he didn't know how he contracted the virus. He also insisted that he was allergic to Fentanyl.