Update—Multilple Arrests from Freds Pharmacy Hydrocodone Theft
Published by News Release July 23rd, 2008 in Police /Legal.
According to Lt. Jason Akers of the Tenth Drug Task Force, several suspects have been arrested and a sizeable amount of prescription narcotics seized after an investigation at a local pharmacy.
Drug Task Force Agents as well as Monticello Police began the two week investigation and with the assistance of the pharmacy, developed suspects in what Akers calls ‘what we feel is a potentially sizeable theft or diversion of prescription narcotics from the pharmacy to the street’.
According to Akers, the investigation culminated Drug Task Force Agents arresting Brian Rauls, a pharmacy tech, age 22, after he left the pharmacy with an unopened bottle of (100) stolen Hydrocodone.
Two other suspects were also arrested during the course of the investigation. John Carson, age 22 and Jonathan Foster, age 22, both of Monticello, are facing charges of obtaining controlled substances by fraud. Both have since been arrested and released pending court appearances.
A search warrant at Rauls’ residence after his arrest resulted in Agents locating more prescription narcotics. Also over $500.00 worth of stolen property being located and Rauls’ roommate, Jena Holmes, age 22, was arrested for Theft of Property in relation to the incident.
Akers added that there are other suspects in the matter who have not been interviewed or arrested as of yet, as they may have retained council and the Task Force’s investigation is not complete.
An internal audit is being performed by the pharmacy and Akers stated that the investigation will ‘be expanded by the task force once we know everything the pharmacy is missing but audits such as this are tedious and require patience’.
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WHAT is happening to our kids? Every other day we hear about our youth doing terrible things. Things my generation would have never even considered. I’m really disappointed with all the bad things that our good kids are doing. I just dont get it. They dont realize how bad this can affect their futures. It’s truely sad.
This is just my opinion but I think our society has become more passive when it comes to our children. Most of the time we make excuses for what we see them involved in, how they talk, what they wear, what they hear, and what they do. Which all can lead to bad influence and bad habits forming.
What’s happening now has always been, but it’s on a much larger scale and we tend to ignore it or talk about them, instead of giving constructive direction and help.
What is a “good kid” anyway? They’re all good but influenced by bad…just like we have been.
I think we must realize that our children are no exception. If it happens to others, it will happen to ours. Ultimately, all we can began to do as a community, is to come together for a common cause…let go of politics, racism, religious separation, and do all we can with all of our abilities and resources, and expect the best.
Well as a 21 year old with two kids of my own, I can tell you what has happen to the Kids or Young People…. NO DISCIPLINE!! Everyone wants to talk about time outs and slaps on the wrist but what they don’t realize is that doesn’t always work. If you don’t structure your children when they are young what do you expect to happen. I don’t mean beat a child but there are so many parents that let their children run them over at a young age then when they grow up they think they are invincible. Not to mention all the parents that don’t take the time out to find out whats going on in their children’s lives and that doesn’t stop when they move out. Your kids will always be under your wing just not as much when they become adults.
The point I am trying to get at is Yes its a shame that these young people did this and there is so much drug use and crime these days, but they don’t just learn how to do these things overnight. You don’t just wake up one day and say “Hey I think I want to pop pills and steal”.
Cory,
I agree. Good point! We can’t go blind on our children. We are to watch over them, guide them, give them directions, and sometimes give them discipline that they don’t agree to or understand yet.
Many parents now want to be best friends instead of parenting.
Cory Says :
“You don’t just wake up one day and say “Hey I think I want to pop pills and steal”.
You hit the nail right on the head with this one.
As a parent of a 20 year old that is a good kid/adult I still worry about her all the time. I’m pretty sure she’s not doing drugs, but you never know.
I was taught to raise your children to the best of your ability and pray for the best. So many parents get caught up in their own problems, they forget their kids need alot of their attention. At any age.
Another problem, and dont get me wrong, I know these kids can get these drugs off the streets, is, if a kid gets hurt playing football for example, they are given pain pills. Then they decide they like them. When the doctor realizes the person no longer needs them, then the kids/adults find them ‘other ways’ to get them. But breaking into a pharmancy? Thats down right crazy!
Then the story a few days before about these 5 boys breaking into schools and Churches. CHURCHES? Now thats bad. Very bad behavior. And how they were raised had nothing to do with it b/c I know 2 of them and their parents are very good parents. I know they are mortified and I feel really bad for them.
Kids and young adults make mistakes, we all do. I did as a young adult but I would have never even THOUGHT about breaking into a Church or a pharmacy. They learned a lesson the HARD way. They got caught! Aside from their parents punishment, they are embarrased, they know everyone in towns knows now and that alone will teach them a lesson.
I’ve heard that once people get addicted, they will do many things that otherwise would never even considered. It’s sad.
“What is wrong with the children of today?”
For all those out there that respond to the arcticles out here on this website, here is your answer, you are what is wrong with the children of today. Instead of using stories such as this to judge youth just remember, if you are a parent of a child, you are responsible for that child’s upraising. Parents today are more apt to look at this story and say well my precious John Doe would never do something like that but never know that their child could be just as in to stuff like this as the next. Don’t critique this story as another lost soul, but use it as an example to guide your own youth through his/her day to day life. The comments such as “we would never have done stuff like this” are useless unless your child knows that you wouldn’t have. Talk to the children, they may not act like it but they are listening. Being from the South, people still have morals. If your children do not have the same morals, it is because you haven’t enstilled them.
Everyone is quick to quote spare the rod spoil the child yet we live in a government over-ran with laws for child abuse. Today a child who gets a spanking is considered abused. Everyone is afraid to discipline his/her children but then claims the problem is a lack of discipline in today’s society. Today it is against school policy to paddle because of government tyranny yet we live in a country that goes to war over oil and political hear-say. If a lack of discipline is the problem, then it is up to the parents to correct this problem before the news floods even more with stories such as this.
Just FYI:Corporal punishment IS still used in school.
Concern, comments me, JJ, saying
“The comments such as “we would never have done stuff like this” are useless unless your child knows that you wouldn’t have. Talk to the children, they may not act like it but they are listening. Being from the South, people still have morals. If your children do not have the same morals, it is because you haven’t enstilled them.
In my own defense, I did raise my child right from wrong and instill mrorals. Believe me, I did plenty of talking, all her life. Herr teachers, Sundy school teachers, any adult that knew her in anyway also told me she was a great student, respectful and smart, that she’s a really good girl and this goes all the way back to pre-school up until today. I got a compliment about her at the P.O. about how polite she is. That’s how I raised her and to always respect the elderly, open doors for people…anytime she saw someone needing helpl,then help. Don’t walk away.Obey the law and always be kind to others.
I raised my kid. I didnt work. I stayed home and was there for her all the time. I was lucky. I never lied to her if she ask me if I got in trouble.
What happened was back in the 60’s, the father could no longer provide for the family and mothers were forced into the work field. If both parents dont work full time, most cant make ends meet. SO, that means, your children grow up being a ‘latchkey’ kid. When my daughter got home from school, I was here to be with her and do whatever she wanted to do. This is NOT our fault that other people (teachers, babysitters,daycare workers) spend more time with our kids, so really, who IS influencening your child. Our lives are so busy that by the time we get off work, cook dinner, help with homework, you’re exhausted.
I am not critizing mothers who work. My point is, that is the reason our children run amoke is because there is no-one around that even knows where they are because they are at work.
It should be like it was on Leave it it Beaver!
Mom stays home with a dress and high heels all day cooking and cleaning and looking after the kids, (JUST KIDDING,) ( bon-bons and Oprah)Then dad come in at 5:05pm, dinner is ready, and they lived good.
Another problem is the break-downs of so many families. This is so common now but in the 50’s and 60’s it was rare to get a divorce. Kids need to be raised by both parents and not shuffleld every weekend, back and forth.
Like I said before, you raise them to the best of your ability and hope for the best. Just hope that they choose the right path. The parents of a few of the kids I know are very good parents.You do it the best you can and HOPE they take the right path. And just because they did this,doesnt mean their lives are ruined They have learned a very hard lesson. And, I believe they WILL go down the right path. They did a stupid thing and they will learn a life lesson from it.
And BTW, I never spanked my daughter, I did’t have too.
temptation is a powerful force, no matter how good your upbringing was. i know the accused and his family and i can tell you that upbringing was not a factor in his decision. just search his name on this website and you will see that he was on the road to success…a road that his family helped to put him on…
The up bringing of these boys isn’t the thing that should be questioned. On the surface of it all, they looked as though they were good people themselves. If someone knew about what they are doing then why didn’t they say something about it sooner?
Seeing good people make mistakes is a very sad sight, and seeing them pay for them is even worse. The kids are the ones that are making these choices in their lives, and because of that the parents are getting, in a sense, blamed for their child’s crime.
Everything they’ve worked for is gone….
Everybody’s points are valid. Now it goes back what will we do now? How can we support the family now? How can perhaps prevent another set of children from going “bad”?
What is the solution? What will the efforts of the community be? Drew County is no exception to the stuff that’s happening all over the country. Let’s find the solution.
there needs to be tougher laws on prescription drugs. they are just as dangerous as crack cocaine or methamphetamine and need to have prison sentences just like those drugs. they are more prevalent than both of the other combined.
Not enough of what we refer to as “Tough Love.” If the child is old enough to commit the crime.. then they’re old enough to do the time! Let them learn their lessons the hard way like we had to growing up! Our parents were strict and believed in a good keen switch or belt! But…in today’s world, do that and bet a dollar that you’ll get picked up for child abuse! Kids take things of this world for granted and don’t appreciate the good things in life! If we had things this good growing up, I would’ve thought that I was rich! As it was.. I learned early in life how to be more appreciative of all that I had! My mom made my clothes and I was proud of them! What would kids today think about if they had to go into the cotton fields and chop cotton from daylight to dark or get up at the break of dawn to milk cows and then strain the milk, churn butter,feed chickens, slop the hogs… They couldn’t handle it!!! Kids need to wake up and learn how to be more appreciative of things that they have and not take it all for granted.. remember..God gave it to us because He loves us..He can take it away just as fast as He gave it!!
Has anyone ever thought that this had nothing to do with this young man’s parents? What if the parents raised this person the best that they could, and he just went down the wrong path as an adult? After all, we are talking about a 22 year old man here, not a kid. He made his own choices, for whatever reasons, and now he has to pay the price for his crime. His parents should not be punished, nor should they be judged for what he as an adult has done. Prescription narcotics are controlled for a reason. This person took it upon himself to steal drugs from the pharmacy and take them into his own hands to do whatever he pleased to do with them. He may have taken them and drank alcohol and got behind the wheel of a car and hit some innocent family driving to church on Sunday morning, or he may have sold them to some kid on the street that overdosed on them and ended their own life because they didn’t know what the pills even were. He should have never had access to this kind of drug, regardless of it he worked in a pharmacy or not. What if it were your kid that he sold the drugs to? What if your child had overdosed and died because they got mixed up in the wrong crowd of friends one Saturday night? This can happen to anyone! It’s not just the “bad” kids. Drugs don’t care who you are and where you come from. Drugs like hydrocodone are controlled and should not end up in the hands of people that they don’t belong. This man, not kid, has committed a crime, not at the fault of his parents or anyone else, but himself. He has stolen controlled drugs and sold them on the street. He has to pay for what he has done, not his parents, him! In the long run, it doesn’t matter if you raised the best child in the world, anyone can get caught up in drug use and abuse. Think about this before you go and criticize the parents of someone who has committed a crime. Maybe his parents are really good people that tried their best. Maybe they are so upset with things that have happened and don’t know what to do. Maybe everyone should stop blaming them without even knowing them. This person made a huge, life altering mistake. He had a ton of things going for him and now he has ruined his life because of drugs. This is so sad……….
My View, I totally agree with everything you say.
True..we can’t blame it on the parents. They raised these young men and taught them well in the lessons that Life has to offer.The choice of careers that they wanted them to have and be successful.From kindergarten thru college..the child has been taught right from wrong and they made the wrong choice.
Robert Frost said it best in this verse:
“Two roads diverged in a wood… I chose the one less traveled and that has made the difference.”
We all make mistakes after all..we’re only human and mistakes are gonna happen..no matter how hard we all try to avoid them. We learn from these mistakes that are made and it’s one more lesson learned…if we continue to do it over and over again,then we must not have learned very much. These young men had access to some very dangerous controlled substances and their resistance was low and the temptation was high. Now they can chalk this up as an experience that will not soon be forgotten. Too bad that they had to learn it the hard way. All three of these young men have waited on me when I went to get my prescriptions filled..I hate that this happened.. good careers wasted.
Brian Rauls was the only one employed at Fred’s Pharmacy. He is the one we are talking about. The others you are referring to were not employed there.
Yes, he made a mistake that he has to learn from, but from the looks of things, he will be doing that from prison. Do we let murderers and rapists go free because they chose to do wrong and harm others? No, we send them to jail because they have done wrong and that’s where they belong! Brian Rauls deserves to be in jail, so that he won’t harm himself or others with controlled drugs anymore. There are many of us in this world that could have just taken “the road less traveled by” as you stated, but we chose to work hard and be honest and do what we know is right, not take the easy way out and steal drugs and sell them on the street. And by the way, that’s not even what the poem by Robert Frost is about. He isn’t talking about the road less traveled by as making the wrong choices in life. He is talking about taking a different road than others and succeeding beyond the norm. This report listed Mr. Rauls as the pharmacy technician that stole the hydrocodone. The other 2 men were not employed at Fred’s Pharmacy, so how did they wait on you there? They were arrested for an entirely different charge. In my opinion, there are way too many people in this world that think criminals should have a second chance. Not me. I believe that if you do the crime, you should do the time. You can have your second chance after you pay for what you have done wrong. This is what is wrong with our legal system today. We let too many people get away with too many crimes. We should lock them up and throw away the key instead. No one made him do this. He did it, there’s no going back to make the right choice. Kids today should understand this….Go to school, get good grades, go to college, get out of college, get a job, make a living for yourself. Stop looking for the easy way out and stop making wrong choices and stealing pills to sell for money. I wish that everyone would stop trying to give these kids a break. They already had it made, they just screwed up the rest of their lives. Are we to blame? NO, we are not. Mr. Rauls had the same chance as everyone else in this world to make the right choices. He just chose not to. His bad!
There are a lot of people in our prison system today because that is where they need to be, but there are also a lot of people in prison because,(not trying to sound repetitive), they made a bad choice. It does not make them evil nor does it make them criminals for life. There have been people who have gone to prison, gotten out and lead very meaningful lives helping thousands of people. Many of them famous people now.
I agree that our legal system is not perfect, but lock them up and throw away the key? People who favor that sort of system should move to China or Russia. Maybe to the Arab countries, they still cut off your hand for stealing and stone you or chop off your head for comitting adultry.
Christ tells us to be forgiven of our sins, we must first be willing to forgive others of thiers. They should be made to pay for the crime they did, but maybe instead of judging these young men, we should be praying for them and thier families.
Maybe I’m thinking about somebody else there. If I made a mistake..I’m willing to admit it. I hate that this happened to him.. but sometimes in life, we make the wrong choices and have to pay for it in some way. We’ve all made them.. I sincerely hope that Brian gets the chance to make things right and return to his job.. it might take a long time before that happens. I know that his family is really hurting over all that has happened concerning this.. I just pray that they will have strength and courage to face whatever may happen. I’m gonna pray for Brian and the other young men that were involved in this. That’s what they need the most. If I made the mistake..I apologize right now. To Brian’s family.. I just pray that God will give you the strength and courage to face this hard road.
GOD GRANT ME THE SERENITY TO ACCEPT THE THINGS I CANNOT CHANGE.. THE COURAGE TO CHANGE THE THINGS I CAN AND THE WISDOM TO KNOW THE DIFFERENCE.
TAKE CARE AND MAY GOD BLESS…
That’s the point that I am trying to make. If we did something like you say happens in other countries, then maybe we wouldn’t be in the shape we are in today. I would love to live in a place where criminals actually had to pay for what they have done. Let’s make an example out of some of these criminals and maybe we would have less criminals. We have an outrageous amount of criminals in the United States, just because they get nothing done to them. A slap on the wrist and they are out of jail again. This is not right.
I agree as well that prayer is what this guy needs, but I will not be praying for him to get a slap on the wrist. If I were to pray for him, it would be for him and people like him to stop the hateful, hurtful, wrong things they are doing in this world, so that my children can grow up in a world where this sort of thing doesn’t exist. As long as we let criminals get away with crimes, it is only going to get worse and worse.
Oh, and Nan, this guy will never be allowed to return to any pharmacy job for the rest of his life. I guess that no one really realizes the severity of his actions. He will be lucky to even have a life one of these days. He will be lucky to get any sort of job at all, but I can assure you it won’t be one in a pharmacy. Who would be dumb enough to hire someone that steals controlled drugs? If he steals those, what else would he steal from you to make a quick buck?
What I will pray for today is that the judicial system does the right thing and gets this criminal off the streets, so that he doesn’t “accidentally” make the wrong choice and doesn’t hurt an innocent child.
Yes, there may have been some people in prison that got out to lead successful lives and helped others, but how often does this really ever happen? More often than not, you hear of these criminals not serving all of their sentence, getting out, and doing the same thing again, or something even worse. This is not the answer. Drugs like hydrocodone are addictive, and addictions are an illness. Addictions and illness can make you do crazy things. What if he sold this drug to your child? I am simply looking out for our future, our children.
The horrid, evil things have been going on since Adam and Eve left the garden. The world will be a sinful place full of criminals Until the return of Christ. If you love the way other countries are run, I am sure you will be able to find a plane ticket there. Just remember though, you wont find any web sites to voice your opinions on b/c the goverment and legal systems censor those type of things in those wonderful countries.
The problem with our society today is we are too passive towards crime and the people who commit it. We slap them on the wrist and say, “Now don’t do that again.” Why can’t we as Americans have both freedom of speech and harsher punishment for criminals?
You can always run for office and change them.
Isn’t that what everyone that runs for office promises and it never happens? I don’t know why anyone votes anymore because all the politicians make the same broken promises. If I thought I could run for office and actually make some changes, I would be the first one there, but with the world the way it is today, it would take a miracle to change all the wrong that exists.
Bottom line is that this person that we have been talking about for the past few days is a drug dealer. He stole prescription narcotics and sold them on the street. That makes him a drug dealer. Drug dealers should be in prison where they belong. It doesn’t matter what any of us think about this, it’s just the right thing to do. GET DRUG DEALERS OFF THE STREET!!!
The people who dont vote dont have any reason to complain. If you dont vote you dont care.
Your right, he needs to be off the street and pay his debt, but like it or not, everyone deserves a second chance. If not, God would have turned his back on all of us a long time ago, bottom line.
You are entitled to your opinion the same as anyone else.
You will never change my view this topic. He may get his second
chance one day, but it won’t be anytime soon, and for that I am
very glad! At least for that long, I won’t have to worry about THAT
drug dealer selling drugs to my kids or anyone elses. I am done
with this back and forth conversation with you. If this person had
sold drugs to someone that went crazy on them and murdered a
loved one of yours, would you sit here and say that he deserved
a second chance? I think not. You and everyone else on here knows
my views on this story. This will be my last comment to you or anyone
else on this story. Bottom line is that drug dealers need to be in prison
so that they won’t harm other innocent people, same as murderers.
I guess that you and I will watch and see what happens to this person, but from the talk I have heard, it’s not going to be pretty for him for a long, long, time to come. Good day WH.
It is amazing to read of the compassion that exists in people today, specifically the previous posters-sarcasm intended. It was stated that we consider the potential harm that Mr. Rauls has caused the community, that we should imagine him selling drugs to our own children. I’m going to summarize with the generic “what if it was your child overdosing?” statement. We all understand: drugs are bad. This is not a new revelation that you are all gracing us with. I think what Mr. Rauls did is grievous; I have always considered him far too intelligent to do something so dirty and ignorant. I do not pretend to defend any one of his actions. I do think that it is important for the judicial system, and the viewing public, to consider the backgrounds of suspects. This young man had/has a lot going for him: he’s articulate, kind-hearted, and smart. He made a terrible decision. I do believe jail time is necessary. He did the crime and he should do the time, but how much time remains a point of concern. I am self-aware enough to admit a bias, so I decline to suggest an acceptable sentencing. I do want to express my shock and disappointment in the comments on this page. Some of you are acting surprisingly cavalier about Mr. Rauls’ future. I digress to the beginning of my statement regarding the “what if it was your child overdosing?” statement. What if it was your child stealing and/or selling the drugs? Would you still maintain the same cavalier tone? I venture to say that you all wouldn’t.
It was not my intention to strike a nerve. I am not trying to change anyones opinion b/c that is what is so good about this web site. I really enjoy the back and forth discussions.
No matter what you say about Brian Rauls doesn’t change the fact that a good man chose to ruin his own life. He was a good, friendly guy and it hurts me to see people trash him. Yes, he needs to do his time and no his parents shouldn’t be blamed. This just goes to show that you can’t ever judge a book by its cover or put your trust in someone that you “think” you know.
As far as what you can do to help their families: Pray!
As you stated: ALL WE CAN DO IS PRAY THAT GOD WILL TOUCH HIS LIFE AND HELP HIM GET THINGS RIGHT IN HIS LIFE AND PUT ALL OF THIS BEHIND HIM. NO..WE CAN’T BLAME THE PARENTS.. THIS YOUNG MAN WAS OLD ENOUGH TO MAKE HIS CHOICE AND IT WAS WRONG. THE ONLY ONE THAT WE CAN REALLY PUT OUR TRUST IN IS GOD! HE HASN’T LET US DOWN YET!!!