Missing meds force pharmacy to close

Chris Cole Pharmacy Closing

Chris Cole Pharmacy has been a fixture in Arcadia for more than three decades, but in just a few days, the drug store will be history. "Our customers are very upset about the fact it's closing down," said owner Lee Brown. Brown says she has no choice but to close it down thanks to five women accused of stealing and selling more than 10-thousand pills. "They were waiting until the pharmacist went to sleep at night and going in and getting his key," said Bienville Parish Sheriff John Ballance. Investigators say the three main culprits are the pharmacist's step-daughter, Diana Lofton, and her daughters, Venus Lofton and India Feazel. Sheriff Ballance says the women also stole the pharmacist's code to the alarm system. Authorities say they broke into the pharmacy several times between June and July. The stolen pills were said to be sold for as much as ten dollars each in Bienville, Claiborne, Lincoln, Bossier and Caddo parishes. Also charged in connection are Christen Murphy and Alice Goodwin. Ballance says when Goodwin was arrested for an unrelated charge in Webster parish, she started singing like a bird. One month later, deputies had a flock of people behind bars. "We knew there were pills on the street, but we were unaware of how they were obtaining them," said Ballance. Lee Brown, who voluntarily surrendered her controlled substance license, says she hopes all five women are brought to justice as quickly as possible.

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Missing meds force pharmacy to close