Alleged pharmacy burglar foiled

A burglar who staged a sophisticated break-in and stole $400,000 worth of prescription drugs from an Upper Darby pharmacy last Monday was foiled when he left the drugs in the unlocked trunk of a car that he left unattended in the snow, police said.

A neighbor called police, who found the drugs in a gym bag bearing the suspect's name and phone number.

"We're calling this Operation Dumb and Dumber," Upper Darby Police Superintendent Michael Chitwood said yesterday.

Thomas Ferkler, 43, of Hartley Road in Upper Darby, was arrested Friday night on charges of burglary, theft, trespass and related crimes.

Chitwood said Ferkler carefully planned the drug heist: Wearing a ski mask and carrying a portable scanner to monitor police communications, he cut the phone lines, dismantled the alarm system, and disabled the surveillance cameras at Corus Pharmacy in the 7600 block of West Chester Pike.

Armed with a diagram of the building's interior, Ferkler entered through an air-conditioning system on the roof, Chitwood said. Once inside, he opened two safes and stole drugs including Valium, Xanax and OxyContin that police said are worth hundreds of thousands of dollars on the street, Chitwood said.

"This guy was very sophisticated," said Chitwood. "We had nothing. No forensics. Just a first-class, well-thought-out operation."

Well, almost.

After carefully packaging the drugs for street sales, Chitwood said, Ferkler left them in his gym bag in the unlocked trunk of an unregistered car that he parked down the street from his house. The car was left unattended in the snow for several days, with the car keys still in the trunk.

A neighbor called police, who discovered the drugs. A name tag on the gym bag led them to Ferkler, who police said had a criminal record dating to 1985.

At the time of his arrest, police said, Ferkler was awaiting trial in Philadelphia for allegedly stealing a car. He is in jail after failing to post $100,000 bail.
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