GIRARD - A would-be thief cut through the roof of a downtown Girard pharmacy and dropped into the business early Tuesday morning.
Despite cutting several phone and electrical lines, the intruder to Brine Pharmacy, 906 N. State St., failed to disconnect the security system, and motion sensors triggered the alarm at 4:11 a.m.
Officers who responded were unable to see that any entry had occurred until store manager Ronald McDermott called to report the break-in several hours later when he arrived at work about 8 a.m.
"They got out as fast as they got in," said owner Garry Mrozek. Mrozek noted the intruder did not steal anything, but assumes he or she was after controlled narcotics.
Girard police Capt. John Norman said police are awaiting the results of the pharmacy's inventory.
"When they hit pharmacies, that's usually my guess," Norman said, noting any narcotic could be the target, but especially oxycontin and other opiates.
The report says surveillance cameras captured a large, light-colored SUV in the parking lot and someone pulling a bag from the rear passenger door.
Mrozek said the store employs a "state-of-the-art" security system, but now even that will be upgraded.
"We're not your normal small-town pharmacy," he said. "The only thing we didn't have is motion sensors on the roof, and by 5 p.m. today we'll have those too."