PROVO — The former head of the state Department of Public Safety who abruptly left his post for "health reasons" earlier this year pleaded guilty Monday to doctor-shopping for painkillers.

Scott Duncan, 57, entered a plea in abeyance in 4th District Court to two third-degree felony charges of falsely obtaining a prescription and to filing a fraudulent insurance claim, a misdemeanor.

He agreed to a deal with prosecutors to serve 36 months of probation. The charges, filed last month, will then be dismissed if he does not violate probation.

Assistant attorney general Shelley Coudreaut said Duncan came to authorities and said he had a drug problem. He admitted going to multiple doctors in Utah County to obtain prescriptions for hydrocodone, she said.

As he left court Monday, Duncan said the incidents happened after his resignation as DPS commissioner in January. He declined to comment further.

Days before he quit, Duncan was stopped twice for swerving on a road in southern Utah. He first told a deputy he was distracted by an audio book and was let go. Later, a UHP trooper stopped him again, noticed something was wrong and took Duncan to a Cedar City hospital to be examined.

Duncan was eventually driven back to Salt Lake City, with officials describing his demeanor as "lethargic and somewhat forgetful."

He has since entered drug treatment, Coudreaut said.

— Paul Koepp