Spokane police; Sheriff's office arrest accused serial pill robber

Spokane female pharmacy robber 3FUGITIVES CAPTURED Jan. 23, 2014 --
A collaboration between the Spokane Police Department and the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office led to the arrest of two suspects in connection to several recent pharmacy robberies.

Jacy Thomson, 33, and Phillip Powlus, 35, were arrested overnight and booked into the Spokane County Jail.

SPD and SCSO shared information regarding the investigations and identified persons of interest in each of the robberies.  Additionally, they worked to investigate a connection between the robberies.

On Wednesday night, Spokane police responded to a report of a Robbery at the Albertson’s pharmacy in the 9000 block of Indian Trail. Officers arrived on-scene minutes after the initial 911 call. Witnesses indicated a white male in his mid-20’s, with a bandanna over his face, had jumped over the pharmacy counter, grabbed an undisclosed amount of prescription medication, and fled. Approximately 15 minutes after the robbery call, a citizen called to report a number of empty prescription medication bottles on Five Mile Rd. near the intersections of Woodside and Elgin.

As a follow up to this incident, as well as information collected and shared through inter-agency cooperation with SCSO detectives, members of the Spokane Police Patrol Anti-Crime Team (PACT) identified the suspect vehicle, a silver Dodge, described in the earlier Indian Trail Albertson’s pharmacy robbery.  The vehicle was stopped by PACT near Division and Magnesium. Thomson and Powlus were inside and arrested.

Spokane police say Thomson has 5 previous felony convictions

    Powlus - 5 previous felony convictions

      Spokane female pharmacy robber

      FUGITIVE WANTED IN SPOKANE Jan. 10, 2014 --
      Detectives say a the same woman is responsible for three pill robberies last weekend in Spokane. One of them happened at a pharmacy, the other two at a grocery store.

      Investigators say she's bold too -- hitting in the afternoon.

      "Robbery in and of itself is a violent crime, and the type of drugs that this female is requesting are highly addictive and we're concerned that it may cause her to be more desperate," said Detecive Mike Ricketts. "The other thing is that her demeanor in these robberies is increasingly concerning to us for her safety and the public's safety."

      Detectives think she's white with brown hair, 20 to 30 years old, about 5-foot-5 and likely not acting alone.

      Let's help her kick the habit before someone seriously gets hurt. If you recognize this accused serial female pill perp, call Crime Stoppers of the Inland Northwest.

      CRIME STOPPERS: 1-800-222-TIPS

      You must call the Crime Stoppers hotline with your tip to be eligible to receive a cash reward for information leading to a fugitive’s arrest.

      CLICK HERE for information on how to TEXT A TIP to Crime Stoppers