An Ohio man has been charged with two felonies and a misdemeanor for allegedly breaking into and burglarizing a Hillsboro pharmacy, although he and an alleged accomplice had not yet been captured, Hillsboro Police Chief Steve Meinberg said Monday (May 18).
The two men are suspected in a string of pharmacy burglaries in several states, Meinberg said.
The Hillsboro case occurred about 3 a.m. Feb. 29, when “two people threw a rock through the window of Health Mart Pharmacy,” Meinberg said. “They stole a large amount of prescription drugs that were locked up. They were in and out of there in, probably, a minute.”
Meinberg credited solid police work in identifying George H. Cunningham of Columbus, Ohio, as a suspect in the Feb. 29 burglary at Health Mart Pharmacy, 10666 Business 21.
“Officer Meghan Lokey did the entire investigation for us,” Meinberg said. “We have some video. She found out the same two guys also are suspects at pharmacy break-ins in Ladue, two in Illinois, one in Indiana and one in North Carolina.”
Meinberg said Cunningham was identified through video footage, but his accomplice was not.
“They’re still out there,” Meinberg added.
On April 28, the Jefferson County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office charged Cunningham with felony stealing of $25,000 or more, a class C felony; second-degree burglary, a class D felony; and second-degree property damage, a class B misdemeanor.
If convicted, Cunningham faces three to 10 years in prison for the class C felony, up to seven years in prison for the class D felony charge and up to six months in jail for the misdemeanor charge.