A burglary crew is responsible for at least six break-ins at pharmacies across North Georgia in recent weeks, including two that occurred Monday morning within a 20-minute span, authorities said.
The suspects, typically clad in black hoodies and masks, appear to be after prescription drugs at mom-and-pop pharmacies, though larger retail chains have also been targeted, according to investigators.
Deputies said three people entered Bell’s Family Pharmacy in Pickens County about 4:15 a.m. Monday after prying open the front door with a yellow crowbar. Once inside, the suspects helped themselves to “a significant amount of narcotics” and $20 in cash, investigators said. They were in and out in about three minutes.
Exactly 19 minutes later, the same thing happened at Ball Ground Pharmacy about 7 miles south in Cherokee County, authorities said. The group has been linked to similar heists in Covington, Newnan and Gwinnett County, according to Hannah Wise, spokeswoman for the Pickens County Sheriff’s Office.
In the surveillance photos from Monday’s break-in, one suspect can be seen holding the yellow crowbar, Wise said. A second suspect appears to be holding a blue handgun.
“They’re in and out within minutes and alarms don’t seem to bother them,” she said. “They have a very similar method of entry using the yellow crowbar and the times are always consistent. They seem to break in during that same time frame in the surrounding counties as well.”
In the Ball Ground burglary, the suspects used the crowbar to steal prescription drugs that were locked in a safe, police Chief Bryon Reeves said.
“Everything they did fits the MO from these other burglaries,” Reeves said, adding that the crew is also suspected in back-to-back pharmacy break-ins early Jan. 4, one in Newnan and the other in Covington. “It could be numerous people or it could be the same ones just traveling around. It’s hard to tell at this time.”
Newnan police are investigating two burglaries that occurred within their jurisdictions over the past two months. In the Jan. 4 incident, officers were called to Coweta Pharmacy on Greison Trail about 3 a.m. Police said three suspects shattered the front door of the business before raiding the pharmacy, two safes and a cash register.
Newnan detectives are also working a similar burglary that occurred Dec. 3 at Thompson’s Pharmacy, according to incident reports obtained Tuesday.
In addition, Gwinnett police are investigating a burglary that occurred Friday morning at a Publix near Lilburn, agency spokesman Cpl. Ryan Winderweedle said. He confirmed that four people broke into the store on Five Forks Trickum Road after 3 a.m. In that case, it appears the burglars stole two bottles of cough medicine containing codeine.
The suspects appear to leave each scene in a white, four-door sedan, though investigators have not determined an exact make or model of the car.
Detectives believe the suspects stake out each location ahead of time and strike in the middle of the night. “Even so, they still carry firearms as a precaution,” Wise said, encouraging pharmacy owners and police to be careful when responding to burglary calls.
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