Gladwin Pharmacy Theft Netted Over 2000 Pills
39-year-old Christopher George Ramirez, and 41-year-old Erin Kathleen Dennis, have both been arrested in connection with an alleged break-in that left thousands of pills missing from a local pharmacy. But if the police are correct, Ramirez and Dennis are only two members of a pharmacy theft ring that is suspected of burglarizing at least 25 pharmacies around the state of Michigan.
The pair, both from Fenton, were arrested by Gladwin City Police on January 6th, and have since been arraigned on a number of charges as a result. They appeared in Clare County’s 80th District Court before Magistrate Michael Greer, where they were formally charged with numerous felonies. These included Safe Breaking, Delivery / Manufacture of a Controlled Substance, Breaking and Entering a Building with Intent, and Possession of Burglary Tools.
According to court records, the store that was robbed was called The Medicine Shoppe. Located in Gladwin, it was broken into on the 18th of November, and a substantial number of narcotics were stolen. According to investigators, the number of pills taken exceeded 2000 in total.
Security cameras showed people breaking into the closed pharmacy, wearing gloves and masks. They cleared hundreds of bottles from the shelves, placed them into duffel bags, and fled the scene in a waiting SUV. As pills were transferred from the original bottles to other methods of storage, the suspects threw the pill bottles out of the car window. Police found almost 200 empty pill bottles along the side of M-18, which were collected as evidence.
Investigators say that they have identified an additional member of the burglary ring as well, although that person’s identity has not been revealed as they have not been formally charged. However, apparently the third person has been cooperating with law enforcement as they investigate this case.
Police are also saying that this particular case is still under investigation. Thus far, the investigation has included assistance provided to the Gladwin Police by the Michigan State Police FANG drug team, as well as the DEA. Most of the stolen narcotics are schedule 2 drugs, which means that if Ramirez and Dennis are convicted they will be behind bars for a long time.Â
According to the officers investigating this pharmacy theft ring, the missing pills from The Medicine Shoppe were located at a number of different homes in the Fenton area. Apparently this has been an ongoing issue for several years now. Officials are saying that the defendants have been robbing pharmacies across the state since 2012, with the total now at 25.
Since their arraignment, Dennis has posted bail, but Ramirez remains behind bars. Dennis was granted a bond of $10,000, while Ramirez’s bond was considerably more, at $250,000.