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Pharmacy burglars steal most powerful drugs

They break into Radiance Pharmacy in Largo and go for the oxycodone and Percocet, worth plenty on the street.

By JACOB H. FRIES
Published July 14, 2006

LARGO - Eight years ago, when Nwando Nwanna became a pharmacist, she didn't expect to be a target.

But that's exactly what has happened.

Her Radiance Pharmacy, 110 Clearwater-Largo Road S, was robbed at gunpoint in December and again in June.

Then, on Monday morning, Nwanna arrived at work to discover someone had busted through the back door and emptied the shop of thousands of pills of the most powerful pharmaceutical drugs, including oxycodone and Percocet, Nwanna and police said.

On Tuesday, she was still comparing what was stolen with her inventory records.

"Everything," she said. "They took everything."

These days, robberies and burglaries at pharmacies like Nwanna's have been increasingly common, Largo police Sgt. Ed Sohoski said. It's a trend that is playing out across the country, law enforcement officials say.

For addicts and drug dealers, the purloined pills can fetch big money on the street. One oxycodone pill, for example, is sold for $25 to $40, Sohoski said.

"This is a big haul," Sohoski said of the burglary. "It's safe to assume that this is way beyond what a person could use."

Police have put the time of the robbery between 5 a.m. Sunday and 7 a.m. Monday, when Nwanna came to work, Sohoski said.

The thieves first cut power to a security light and pried open the rear door. Once inside, they forced open an iron gate and went directly for the controlled substances.

This, despite Nwanna's recent efforts to beef up security.

"I never thought it was a hazardous profession," Nwanna said.

Even though she acknowledged that she had not figured out how to secure the pharmacy, Nwanna said, she vowed to stay open. It's too important, she said.

"We're doing a service for the community, and we'll not just fold up," she said.

[Last modified July 13, 2006, 22:30:47]