Anyone Gonna Talk About The Walgreens Pharmacy Robbery and Others, Recently?!????

[burgundystar77]

Walgreens Pharmacy was robbed yesterday afternoon....the guy handed over a note with the drugs that were to be given to him, and it wasnt apparent that he had a gun or any other weapon. Hhhmmm, I was going to say why doesnt the Steuben Co Drug Task Force team take a few of their guys off the streets and place them undercover in all stores having pharmacies, to stop this, but was informed that the stores have to pay for their own security-they're getting some of the drugs off the streets, so why cant they do the same, with these crazy guys who are robbing from the pharmacy, to use the drugs to get high and to mix the drugs they steal, to create illegal drugs...hhhmmm, just my two cents worth, but yeah, something needs to be done! And that it wasnt assumed that he had any weapon, why on earth would a pharmacist just hand the drugs over, come on, I mean, he/she for that matter, could have done like another pharmacist did a while back and punched the guy in the face enough to subdue him and call the cops before he got away....geez!!!

[Torget]

Ummm, most likely it is company policy to give them whatever is demanded. Just because he didn't mention having a weapon doesn't mean he didn't have one. Would you risk your life over a couple bottles of pills that aren't even yours? I have also heard of pharmacists who fought off the robber only to be fired or disciplined for not following company policy. Are you gonna risk losing your job, or your life over that?

Most pharmacies in higher crime areas, such as the south east side of Ft. Wayne, do have security guards. I don't think anyone considers any part of Angola to be a high crime area.

Apparently you haven't been to Walgreens lately, One pharmacist is an older gentleman and the other that I have seen is a very petite woman. Not that either one couldn't take out this guy, but the robber in this case probably had a clear advantage should the pharmacist choose to get physical.

[HomeyG]

If we are talking about the Michigan pharmacist who shot at the robbers, he was fired.

http://abcnews.go.com/Business/fired...8#.TxX7-5hc_zI

[HoosierHelen]

This past year the CVS Pharmacy in Leo had an armed robbery. I knew that it had happened, I saw the Police while they were there investigating. I had visited with a clerk who was on duty at the time and who I know personally. Yet it did not get reported in any of our local media even several days later. I too was curious why that it was not showing up in the news. I even posted an inquiry on FP about where is this story. Then a while later, the story did appear as well as the story about the arrest of the suspect.

Another interesting aspect of that event was that when I was paying for a purchase at a different CVS in FW (prior to the suspects arrest), they had a photo posted by their cash register from the video of the robbery that had occurred at Leo. It does seem that they delay reporting these pharmacy robberies. Not sure why that is and I do wonder how many go unreported?

[Common-Tater]

Walgreens Pharmacy was robbed yesterday afternoon....the guy handed over a note with the drugs that were to be given to him, and it wasnt apparent that he had a gun or any other weapon. Hhhmmm, I was going to say why doesnt the Steuben Co Drug Task Force team take a few of their guys off the streets and place them undercover in all stores having pharmacies, to stop this, but was informed that the stores have to pay for their own security-they're getting some of the drugs off the streets, so why cant they do the same, with these crazy guys who are robbing from the pharmacy, to use the drugs to get high and to mix the drugs they steal, to create illegal drugs...hhhmmm, just my two cents worth, but yeah, something needs to be done! And that it wasnt assumed that he had any weapon, why on earth would a pharmacist just hand the drugs over, come on, I mean, he/she for that matter, could have done like another pharmacist did a while back and punched the guy in the face enough to subdue him and call the cops before he got away....geez!!!

It comes down to cost. It costs more money to pay a security officer than it does to lose a few hundred bucks in drugs.

[Graygleam]

It comes down to cost. It costs more money to pay a security officer than it does to lose a few hundred bucks in drugs.

The free enterprise system in action.

[HoosierHelen]

If we are talking about the Michigan pharmacist who shot at the robbers, he was fired.

http://abcnews.go.com/Business/fired...8#.TxX7-5hc_zI

Homey, I do agree with and appreciate the store policy. Visualizing myself as a customer within any store when an armed robbery might be occurring, I feel much safer knowing that there will not be a shoot out between the staff and a robber. Just makes good business & security sense to me?

[Torget]

CT...It depends on the drug whether or not it is a few hundred or a few thousand, but I agree and know what you're saying.

[armyda]

The free enterprise system in action.

As compared to what other system? Is there some system you have in mind to provide this protection?

[Graygleam]

As compared to what other system? Is there some system you have in mind to provide this protection?

No, I was agreeing with CT.

[HoosierHelen]

I've gotta disagree with Tater. As all can see in my previous posting on this thread...I feel most safe with the absence of firearms present at my shopping locations.

I expect Tater to respond with something to the effect that private security officers being present does not necessarily mean fire arms are present? With that I am COOL...so go chase the bad guys and write down their physical description (which is already on security video) and then write down the description of the vehicle and the license number (which generally can be acquired by outside videos). I'm fine with the reporting aspects...just not firing guns around me when I am shopping.

I see no constructive purpose for additional security persons being added to our pharmacies/retail centers. Even at my local bank, they do not need a security guard...they have video cameras and alarm systems that come into play when a crime is/has been committed. I like it like that!!

[Torget]

HH, Not sure where you are coming from here with your disagreement. I have not seen anyone, except for Burgundystar advocating for security guards.

[Torget]

I'll add one more thing, I think they should set the cameras lower so you can actually see their face rather than the top of their hooded sweatshirt with a ballcap bill sticking out from under it. These people know where the cameras are and they are effectively hiding their faces by doing this. Put the cameras right in their faces!

[HoosierHelen]

HH, Not sure where you are coming from here with your disagreement. I have not seen anyone, except for Burgundystar advocating for security guards.

Torget...the following is what I was responding to. It comes down to much more than cost. It comes down to WHERE I feel safe shopping.

It comes down to cost. It costs more money to pay a security officer than it does to lose a few hundred bucks in drugs.

[Torget]

Then why did you presuppose Taters response having to do with added guards?

For the business, it really doesn't come down to more than cost. Do you really think they take YOU and YOUR feelings into consideration?

[HoosierHelen]

Then why did you presuppose Taters response having to do with added guards?

For the business, it really doesn't come down to more than cost. Do you really think they take YOU and YOUR feelings into consideration?

Just a wild guess, Torget.

[Common-Tater]

I've gotta disagree with Tater. As all can see in my previous posting on this thread...I feel most safe with the absence of firearms present at my shopping locations.

I didn't suggest that. I was only explaining the business point of view of why you don't see security officers at these kinds of locations in this area.

I expect Tater to respond with something to the effect that private security officers being present does not necessarily mean fire arms are present? With that I am COOL

Correct. I would only recommend firearms at high risk locations (meaning roberies at that specific location are extremely common). But only with officers that are trained to use firearms and are required to meet a certain number of logged hours at a range each month and that hey meet a specificed level of competentcy. Just because an armed guard is present, doesn't mean he'll draw his weapon... That is always a last resort.

...so go chase the bad guys and write down their physical description (which is already on security video) and then write down the description of the vehicle and the license number (which generally can be acquired by outside videos).

It's clear, like most people and business, you have no idea what security officers are for. This is a problem we face in the industry. Officers mainly serve as a preventative measure. They deter some crimes just by being visible. But usually do not engage suspects. My officers stay in contact with the police department. We deescalate people who are acting out, but those determined to become violent are left to the police dept. to handle. We merely assist when necessary. We serve in areas of loss prevention, access control, and risk management. A lot of what I do is policy making and developing procedures and making recommendations to the client regarding security (again, preventative measures). We're nothing like what you see i the movies. Unfortunately, most security officers don't have the education and experience to understand this either. I'll briefly comment, cameras usually are too far away to catch licence plate numbers. And you can't zoom recorded footage without specialized systems. And most are not set up that way because of cost. You're actually lucky if you can even get an accurate color of vehicle on camera because of the poor video quality.

I see no constructive purpose for additional security persons being added to our pharmacies/retail centers. Even at my local bank, they do not need a security guard...they have video cameras and alarm systems that come into play when a crime is/has been committed. I like it like that!!

It just depends on the type of business, the type of community, and the crime rate/risk level. In most cases around here, I agree, there is no need for security officers. Although, keep in mind, you often have loss prevention staff at stores, like Wal-Mart and Meijer who do serve as security. They're just not uniformed, but they are watching you.

[burgundystar77]

Wow; thats quite a few responses, I've taken them all into consideration. I still don't see why a few law enforcement cant patrol inside these places, during pharmacy hours. Have the government or city pay them, and a small insurance payment each month, from the pharmacies, to pay back. Some of these drugs are ending up being sold on the streets, so 1. not only does the pharmacy loss out on hundreds to thousands of dollars (which the idiot who stole them ends up getting by selling them on the streets), but 2. isn't it the drug task forces goal to get the drugs off the streets!-start with the pharmacies! Ok, so I may not be very smart in these matters, but I do make sense, atleast to me haha.

[Common-Tater]

Wow; thats quite a few responses, I've taken them all into consideration. I still don't see why a few law enforcement cant patrol inside these places, during pharmacy hours. Have the government or city pay them, and a small insurance payment each month, from the pharmacies, to pay back. Some of these drugs are ending up being sold on the streets,

First of all, you'd never get the police to do it. They are understaffed as it is and since the rate of these crimes in this area is so low, these guys would grow bored of it after the first week. And they'd stop showing up to do thier "rounds." I know of a business that wanted to hire police officers and the asking price was $30/hr so the business decided not to do it.

[burgundystar77]

First of all, you'd never get the police to do it. They are understaffed as it is and since the rate of these crimes in this area is so low, these guys would grow bored of it after the first week. And they'd stop showing up to do thier "rounds." I know of a business that wanted to hire police officers and the asking price was $30/hr so the business decided not to do it.

Well, even though these crimes are low, I came up with another idea to hopefully maybe eventually stop it from happening all together: the pharmacies that were robbed from, get together for a meeting and at this meeting, take inventory of the drugs they were robbed of the most, and I'm not mentally equipped enough to say how they can do this next part, but start putting a tracking device on these drugs, somehow, for the police to be able to track where they've gone to, to eventually find who(s) doing it, and also, once word got out of said tracking devices, others who would want to try, may just think twice! I'm no expert, like I said, on said tracking devices but I'm well aware they can be made pretty small, or can be placed in the bag said drugs are put into (ahead of time, of course, so the creep wont catch on-bags put aside just for that purpose, not to accidentally be used for real customers).
It's just, I'm big on equality, and the hard time druggies are given, who are caught out on the streets, I believe these creeps should face as hard a time as well! Um, not that all the uh 'good' guys in blue really are good, but, thats another subject!