DEA Busts Major Burglary Ring Targeting Independent Pharmacies
The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) is touting the bust of a major independent pharmacy burglary ring, one of the largest ever investigated by DEA agents.
Federal prosecutors in the Eastern District of Arkansas announced charges against an additional 24 people recently, bring the total charged in the case to 42.
The ring, which was based in Houston, Texas, is responsible for burglaries at nearly 200 pharmacies in 31 states, including 20 in Arkansas, most of them small independent pharmacies in rural areas. The suspects stole a variety of addictive pharmacy medications including oxycodone, hydrocodone, alprazolam, cough syrup, and other prescription drugs. The drugs were then transported to Houston for sale and had a street value of more than $12 million.
In the investigation, agents also seized $79,000 in cash, $510,000 in custom jewelry, and 11 firearms.
"This Houston-based network targeted rural pharmacies, stealing powerful drugs like Oxycodone, Xanax, and Adderall to flood the streets,” said DEA Administration Anne Milgram. “We dismantled their entire operation-street dealers, burglars, and all. In the fight against the opioid epidemic, the DEA is relentless in shutting down those who profit from fueling addiction."
Similarities Sparked Investigation
The 21-month operation, known as Operation #RichOffMeds, started when law enforcement noticed similarities between a rash of pharmacy burglaries, including similar methods of entry and similar clothing and footwear worn by the burglars.
DEA Special Agent in Charge of New Orleans Steven Hofer called the arrests a “significant victory in the ongoing fight against criminal drug trafficking organizations."
The investigation was part of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) which identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach.
It comes as the DEA said crimes against independent pharmacies are rising, with nearly 900 burglaries of such establishments reported to the DEA in 2023.