LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — Additional arrests have been made in a multistate pharmacy burglary ring that has led to 42 people being indicted in Arkansas, federal authorities announced Thursday.
Federal prosecutors said 24 people were arrested in Houston in July, and some appeared in federal court in Little Rock on Thursday on conspiracy to possess controlled substances with intent to distribute charges. The charges were part of a new indictment that began with 18 people from the Houston area being charged in November.
The Drug Enforcement Administration said the defendants were linked to 200 pharmacy burglaries in 31 states, including Arkansas. The stolen drugs included oxycodone and hydrocodone and were transported to Houston, where they were sold illegally.
“These defendants were part of a criminal organization whose objective was to break into pharmacies nationwide to steal narcotics that they peddled on the streets,” said Jonathan D. Ross, United States attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas.