Ottawa Sees Increase in Pharmacy Robberies Due to Oxycontin
Posted on December 31, 2009Police in Ottawa are scrambling to try and an solve several unsolved pharmacy crimes that have hit the area in the past month. The pharmacies are being hit in an effort to secure the highly demanded – and highly valuable – addictive painkillers.
The Metro News reported that between September 11 and October 13, police investigated 20 drugstore robberies and four attempted robberies, all which targeted Oxycontin, one of the most popular and potent painkillers on the market.
According to Staff Sgt. Don Sweet of the Ottawa Police Robbery Unit, Oxycontin – often dubbed Hillbilly Heroin – used to be targeted for the drug itself. Now, police believe that these robberies are linked and that the drugs are sold street level through established distribution lines.
“This is way more than what we saw originally,” he said. “You’re always going to see addicted individuals, but this is a newer angle where all of a sudden, we see a huge spike.”
On the street, Oxycontin is priced according to the strength of the particular pill and can be very lucrative for criminals. In Ottwawa, 10, 20 and 40 mg tablets are sold for $20 to $40 a pill, while an 80 mg tablet fetches $40 to $50 per pill.
Police have also investigated thefts of Oxycontin from delivery trucks and pharmacy-related frauds where perpetrators were successful in getting elderly people to pick up the drugs. “It’s very sought after and criminals are seeking different ways of getting in,” Sweet said.
According to Sweet, the majority of the robberies are perpetrated by younger black males using notes. The majority of the robberies happen after 8 p.m. in the suburbs in the west and east ends of the city. While there appears to be no violence involved in these robberies, there is always the threat of violence.
