A 29-year-old transient man who robbed the Mercer Island Albertsons Pharmacy of 384 5-milligram Oxycontin tablets on July 5 is in custody after the King County ProAct team arrested the man last Thursday at a motel on Pacific Highway South.
The alleged robber, Timothy Pomeroy, also robbed a pharmacy in Burien and Kent, said Mercer Island Police Detective Pete Erickson, who credited the arrest to a joint investigation by the Mercer Island police detectives and the King County Sheriff Major Crimes Unit.
Pomeroy is currently being held in the King County Jail on three counts of robbery in the first degree, he said.
During the Kent robbery, Pomeroy left his 6-year-old daughter outside in the car, although the girl left the car and entered the store, where he waited in line at the pharmacy. Pomeroy returned his daughter to the car and re-entered the store to complete the robbery, Erickson said.
The Mercer Island robbery occurred at 8:20 p.m. on June 5. Pomeroy approached the pharmacy counter prescription drop-off area and handed a note to the pharmacist demanding a “common narcotic” drug. He lifted his outer shirt to reveal a bulge under his clothing on his left hip to imply he was armed, according to the police report.
The pharmacist complied with the note, then dialed 911 after Pomeroy left with 384 tablets of Oxycontin.
Store manager John Gillespie said the Oxycontin retails for $300, and Mercer Island detectives estimated the street value at about $1,900.
“He was in the store and out the store in two minutes flat,” Gillespie said Tuesday.
There was some conversation between the robber and the pharmacist, but it was pretty minimal, he said.
The Bellevue Police Department also responded to the call with a K9 unit; however, the dog lost Pomeroy’s scent at 76th Street.
Thursday’s arrest was based on physical evidence and surveillance photos of Pomeroy’s car, a dark grey Mazda 626, that were captured on surveillance cameras at the Mercer Island Albertsons, Erickson said.
“We only have a handful of these a year,” Cmdr. Leslie Burns said of robberies on Mercer Island.
Monday night’s incident was the second robbery recorded in 2010. Two robberies occurred in 2009, and three in 2008, according to Mercer Island Police Department records.
Gillespie said Monday night’s robbery was a first for the Mercer Island Albertsons. The store opened in 1978.
Pomeroy has one previous conviction for armed robbery in Auburn.
