OxyContin Pharmacy Robberies Continue to Be a Problem
It only takes a few minutes searching the news to recognize that there is a growing problem of pharmacy robberies in the United States and Canada. From armed robberies to after-hour thefts, the problem persists. As it gets more difficult to obtain controlled prescription drugs, desperate addicts or those who want to profit from that desperation, will find new ways to obtain these powerfully addictive drugs. A single pill can reportedly fetch up to $80 on the street.
OxyContin is one of the more likely targets of robberies. In Biddeford, Maine this week a man was charged with walking into a CVS Pharmacy and demanding OxyContin from a pharmacy employee. The robber in that incident did not show a weapon. In a similar case in downtown Cincinnati, a robber handed a note to the pharmacist that said, “I want all of the OxyContin now or I’m going to start shooting.” The pharmacist gave the robber the drugs, and the man, 30-year-old Eric Owens, was arrested soon after.
Even Canada has seen a rise in the problem of pharmacy robberies. In Winnepeg, authorities suspect one man is responsible for a series of robberies. The suspect who has not been found used a gun in four different robberies in which he demanded OxyContin pills. In the case of one pharmacy, they have decided to no longer carry the drug so that employees are not at risk of more armed robberies.
More stories of OxyContin holdups over the past couple of weeks:
- In Westbrook, Connecticut a man robbed a Walgreens in the middle of the day. He got more than 100 OxyContin pills from the pharmacist.
- In Carlisle, Pennsylvania a man walked into a CVS and claimed to have a gun under his shirt. He got a few hundred tablets of the powerful opiate.
- In Kettering, Ohio, a suspect flashed a gun at a CVS drug counter and demanded drugs. Police believe this same man is linked to several other OxyContin robberies in recent weeks.
- In Dayton, Ohio, police arrested a man suspected in the robbery of a Walgreens pharmacy. He had a toy gun and cash on him at the time of the arrest. He may have been involved in a string of CVS pharmacy robberies in the area.
- In Spokane, Washington, police took off after a man suspected of just robbing a Walgreens of OxyContin. He tried to swallow the pills when he was pulled over and required medical attention.
- In Manchester, New Hampshire earlier this month a man robbed a Rite Aid drug store by jumping over the counter with a large butcher knife and demanding OxyContin.
As it gets harder to legally obtain these addictive drugs, we will likely see more pharmacy robberies as not only addicts, but those who want to profit by selling the pills, turn to this violent new method of obtaining OxyContin.