BROWNSTOWN TOWNSHIP, Mich. – Police in Brownstown Township are hunting for a pill thief who is seen in security video targeting a CVS store on Telegraph Road.
Officials said thieves usually target narcotics from the store, but the man in the surveillance video stole Nexium, an acid reflux and heartburn pill. People who use the purple pill know how expensive anti-acid medications are.
Workers at the CVS store near Telegraph and Sibley roads noticed July 11 that the entire shelf of Nexium had been cleared off. When they checked security footage, they saw a woman with blonde hair walking in.
But when police looked at the video, they said it was a man dressed as a woman.
"I immediately thought it was a man," Brownstown Police Chief Robert Matthews said.
The disguised man walked in and swiped every package of the purple pills from the shelf. What stood out to police? They said the man was huge.
"I'm going to guess 6 (feet tall), 6-2, 6-3," Matthews said. "The witnesses were saying 300 pounds, so it's a fairly big person."
The man took every box of every variety of Nexium, and nothing else. Why would he dress up like a woman to steal the medication?
"The retail value was $495, just on what this person took," Matthews said. "So I can assume that it's to sell it at a convenience store that's buying their product through the black market. That's pure profit."
Police said they don't have much of a lead. Employees ran out after him, but they only saw a gray Dodge Charger driving away.
Police checked with other areas in the community, but there were no other incidents similar to the one at the CVS.
Experts said the stolen pills usually end up in different shops with owners who buy them from burglars and sell them at a profit.