Police in Philadelphia, Montgomery and Delaware counties are looking for a group of men robbing pharmacies at gunpoint.
"You always see it, you always hear about it, you always know it’s possible, but you always think it’s going to happen to another guy and not you," said Mel's Pharmacy manager Joe Verguldi. "And when it happens to you, it’s very frightening."
Mel’s Pharmacy on West Chester Pike in Broomall is the latest in a string of robberies, where at least one gunman goes into the store demanding Oxycotin and Percocet.
"In our robbery, we had two males enter the store. One stood by while the other went right to the pills, grabbed them and quickly fled the store and jumped into a newer black two-door car," Marple Twp. Police Det. Michael Sharkey said.
Police say the same robbers targeted Katz Pharmacy in Havertown mid-June.
"He walked right into the back, and I was seated right in that chair actually," said Katz Pharmacy employee Josh Hosan.
At least one of the gunmen caught on surveillance video taken at Katz’s Pharmacy. He took-off in a dark-colored car -- possibly a 2007 Pontiac G6 with tinted windows and a missing passenger-side mirror.
"He had a gun in his right hand and then he demanded Oxycotin and Percocet," Hosan said. "We unlocked the cabinet, gave him what he wanted. He gave us a bag to put it in. He ran out the door. He was only in here for 3 minutes."
Police say the gunmen first robbed the Rite Aid on City Avenue in the Wynnefield section of Philadelphia back in April. They then moved-on to mom and pop pharmacies like Howard’s Pharmacy in Lower Merion, Pa. before striking Katz’s in Havertown and Mel’s in Broomall.
In each of the stick-ups, they threaten the clerks and steal prescription drugs with an estimated street value of $15,000 to $20,000.
"I hope they do and get them off the street quickly before somebody gets hurt," Verguldi said. "Right now, everybody’s been lucky, but how long is that going to last, that’s what I’m afraid of."
A $2,000 reward is being offered for information leading to the arrest of the suspects in the Katz Pharmacy robbery. Anyone with information is asked to call 888.479.8477.
