Prescription Pills Apparent Motive in Weekend Robbery, Burglary

A man impersonating a drug task force agent forced his way into a Cartersville  home and demanded cash, pills and cell phones about 2:30 a.m. Sunday, hours before a burglary alarm sounded at Best Pharmacy in an apparent unrelated incident.

The robbery victim, 56, said a man forced his way into the victim's Honeysuckle Drive home in Cartersville, and claimed to be with the Cartersville-Bartow County Drug Task Force, according to the Bartow County Sheriff's Office incident report, attached.

The impersonator had on a brown jacket with the BCSO insignia, a badge hanging around his neck, a gun on his left hip and a camouflage face mask. He warned the victims he had four cars of agents and SWAT down the street and pretended to talk to them on his cell phone.

The robber told the victim he had two options: Option A was to hand over all his cash, pain killers and cell phones, or B, the impersonator "would throw the book at him, tear out all of his walls and charge him 50 years for each tablet he had," according to the report.

Fearing for the safety of his wife and two small children, who witnesses the event, the victim handed over his belongings. As he was leaving, the impersonator said that in an hour he would leave the victim's cell phone in his mailbox.

No one was hurt in the home-invasion type robbery.

The victims say the robber was Caucasian and in his 30s with a slim build, brown hair and brown eyes.

Burglars Net Nearly $15,000 in Pharmacy Burglary

More than 5 hours later in an apparently unrelated incident, a burglar alarm about 7:35 a.m. notified police of a disturbance at Best Pharmacy.  

Authorities who viewed video surveillance report it shows a white car with shiny, chrome wheels pull up, and its passenger exit and kneel down at the pharmacy's door. 

"I then observed both suspects enter the store carrying large, blue, plastic-style bins and go directly to the narcotic section of the pill bottles," a deputy reports. "I then observed one of the suspects use a tool to pry the filling cabinets open and empty the contents into the blue bins. Both suspects then exited the store and backed out of the view of the camera."

The owner reported stolen a $4,000 deposit, which was on her desk, and a number of medications, collectively valued at more than $10,000.

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