‘We were all terrorized’: Pharmacy owners feel vulnerable in wake of escalating robberies
WATERLOO REGION - Open the pharmacy," the masked robber said, pointing to the locker holding the medication.
The pharmacy owner was being held at gunpoint, but he made sure to speak calmly to the three robbers, who were clearly on edge and in a rush.
This was the scene at a Waterloo pharmacy near Erb Street West and Amos Avenue on Nov. 25. It was one of 16 robberies at local pharmacies this year, a growing issue in the region and across the province.
The robberies have local pharmacy owners wondering what can be done to address the rise in crime.
Three Black males walked into his pharmacy at about 2:15 on that Friday afternoon, wearing surgical masks and blue rubber gloves.
They left with $900 to $1,000 worth of opioid drugs like oxycodone, Percocet and hydromorphone, as well as $300 to $400 in cash.
The robbers were rushed and nervous.
They were so focused. They knew what they wanted and they knew how much time they had," said the owner. The Record is identifying the owner of the Waterloo pharmacy only as M.N. and isn't specifying the pharmacy's exact location, because of safety concerns.
The robbers fled in a small, black four-door Chevrolet sedan, which headed south on Fischer-Hallman Road, police said.
Although neither the owner or another employee in the pharmacy at the time were physically hurt, they both felt shaken by the violent incident.
My family, my staff, my staff's family - we were all terrorized," said M.N.
If they (police) want us to feel secure here, please catch them. That's the only way we can feel secure."
Robberies at other pharmacies this year have been similar.
The robberies often involved two or three people, sometimes with the third person driving the getaway car. The robbers demand narcotics and money before fleeing.
That was the experience at Townline IDA Pharmacy in Hespeler, which was robbed just two weeks before M.N.'s business in Waterloo was hit.
On Nov. 10 at around 6:30 p.m., two people entered the pharmacy on Jamieson Parkway.
They were waiting outside and once the patient left the pharmacy, they came suddenly inside and jumped through the counter and they were threatening and asking for the narcotics," the owner said.
The owner wasn't in the pharmacy during the November robbery, but everything was caught on surveillance cameras.
The robbers seemed to know the pharmacy's layout and the location of the drugs they were looking for, the owner said. They stole at least $2,000 worth of narcotics as well as some cash, then fled in a newer-model four-door sedan.
It was the second time this year that the Cambridge pharmacy was targeted. It was also robbed at around 5:45 p.m. on Mar. 16, when two people came into the pharmacy demanding cash and narcotics before leaving in an older-model silver sedan. No one was physically hurt in either robbery.
The incidents are frustrating, the owner said, coming on the heels of a stressful couple of years working hard to help the community combat the pandemic.
Throughout COVID, I did COVID tests, helping people beyond expectation, working 10 to 12 hours," he said.
Police wouldn't say if the region has seen a spike in pharmacy robberies, but the Ontario College of Pharmacists acknowledges incidents are on the rise across the province.
The prevention of often violent robberies in Ontario pharmacies, and the effect of such crime on those who work in pharmacies and the patients who need safe access, is a concern across the pharmacy sector," said Shenda Tanchak, the CEO of the college, in a news release on Nov. 25.
Robberies impact the physical and mental well-being of employees and patients, and can disrupt access to pharmacies that have been robbed. The stolen drugs also contribute to the illicit opioid drug supply in Ontario communities, the college said.
M.N. has ideas about what could make him feel safer, but solutions such as putting trackers in some bottles of narcotics, or hiring security will cost money that his small business cannot afford.
Time-Delayed safes
Time-delayed safes may be one solution. The safes have a built-in delay, so cannot be opened immediately, even when the correct combination is entered. That creates a deterrent for criminals trying to make a quick escape.
The owner of Townline IDA Pharmacy said he wants time-delayed safes mandated for every pharmacy in Ontario.
But M.N., the Waterloo owner, fears the time-delayed safes could put pharmacists in the dangerous position of having to tell desperate robbers they must wait for the narcotics.
The College of Pharmacists plans to discuss the mandatory use of time-delayed safes at a board meeting on Dec. 12.
Requiring time-delayed safes has helped deter pharmacy robberies in other Canadian and American jurisdictions, the college says.
Shoppers Drug Mart and Loblaw pharmacies across Ontario have acted even before a decision from the college. On Nov. 23 Shoppers decided to install time-delayed narcotics safes in all its Ontario pharmacies, as well as all Loblaw pharmacies in stores such as Zehrs, Loblaws, Real Canadian Superstore and No Frills.
British Columbia and Alberta have already mandated the measure.
The College of Pharmacists of British Columbia implemented DrugSafeBC in 2015, requiring all community pharmacies in the province to have time-delay safes to store narcotic drugs. The DrugSafeBC campaign featured print, radio and television ads to make the public aware of the new requirement.
The Alberta College of Pharmacy mandated the safes in all pharmacies by July 1 of this year.
For the time being, M.N. fears his pharmacy may be targeted again, as the Cambridge pharmacy was.
This is something that you never know. It could happen now, it could happen in a year," M.N. said.
I'm not feeling secure."
Cheyenne Bholla is a Waterloo Region-based reporter at The Record. Reach her via email: cbholla@therecord.com