Suspect in string of pharmacy robberies captured in West Virginia
A man suspected in a string of pharmacy robberies in five counties across two states was captured Wednesday evening in West Virginia.
Joshua Cain Abel, 29, whose last known address was in Everson, was spotted driving down Interstate 68 in Fairmont, police said.
Fairmont city police Chief Steve Shine said an off-duty Whitehall officer called in to state police after seeing a man he believed to be Abel.
Police arrested him after he was identified during a traffic stop.
Shine said he was charged with first-degree robbery for an alleged robbery at a Rite Aid in Fairmont Jan. 26.
Shine said he passed an employee a note demanding pills, which he was given.
He did not disclose the details of the note or what drugs Abel allegedly received.
The alleged robbery was similar to January and February robberies in Hopwood, Uniontown, Scottdale, Carmichaels and Sutton, West Virginia in which a man allegedly passed a note to a pharmacist demanding Oxycodon. In some cases, the man allegedly said in the note that he had a gun.
In some of these cases, police said he implied he had a gun in his hand. No one has reported seeing the gun.
Shine said they are still investigating whether or not Abel was armed in the alleged Fairmont robbery.
鈥淪omebody did report seeing something that could have been a gun on his person,鈥� he said.
When Fairmont police brought him in for questioning, he allegedly confessed to robbing another Rite Aid pharmacy in Sutton, West Virginia Tuesday.
Shine said detectives from both departments are coordinating to file charges in Sutton.
Police said Abel will not be extradited to Pennsylvania until he goes through the court process in West Virginia. More charges await him in Pennsylvania.
Scottdale Borough Police Chief Barry Pritts alleged Abel robbed a Rite Aid in Scottdale Jan. 11 by handing a note to an employee saying he had a gun and demanded Oxycodon.
Abel was allegedly given 100 5-mg Oxycodon pills and fled on foot. Pritts said the pharmacist followed him briefly, but lost him when he ducked between two buildings.
Abel is charged with robbery, theft, receiving stolen property and terroristic threats in that case.
State police in Uniontown charged Abel for allegedly robbing Nickman蘑菇视频 Drug Store in South Union Township Jan. 25. In that case, he allegedly passed a note to an employee demanding Oxycodon and said there was another man outside who was timing him.
He allegedly said he and the other man both had guns.
The employee gave the note to the owner, who allegedly gave Abel 150 Oxycodon pills.
Abel is charged with robbery, theft, simple assault and terroristic threats for the Hopwood robbery.
Uniontown City Police and state police in Waynesburg suspect Abel was also responsible for robberies and attempted robberies in Uniontown and Carmichaels.
A man matching Abel蘑菇视频 description allegedly attempted to rob Rite Aid on Connellsville Street in Uniontown Jan. 16.
The man allegedly passed a note to a pharmacist saying to give him Oxycodon and 鈥渘obody would get hurt.鈥�
The pharmacist told the man they were out of stock, to which he allegedly responded, 鈥淭he man outside is in charge.鈥�
He then allegedly asked for Vicodin, which the pharmacist said was also out of stock.
About 45 minutes later, a man robbed Gabler蘑菇视频 Drug Store in Carmichaels. A note allegedly demanded drugs and said he had a gun. He received an undisclosed amount of drugs and fled the scene, police said.
Waynesburg state police believe he tried to rob Gabler蘑菇视频 again Jan. 25, but the suspect fled after a clerk hit an alarm.
State police in Carmichaels and Uniontown City Police believed the same man was responsible for the robberies since Jan. 16 because of matching descriptions, proximity and similar methods. As more pharmacy robberies occurred, more police departments began investigating the suspected link between the alleged incidents.