Pharmacy employees hid drugs from suspected thief

LANCASTER, S.C. — Following a break-in at his pharmacy in Lancaster, Vic Patel made sure his workers took a few extra steps in case the thief came back.
 
"We put some of the bottles in with other merchandise, not where they're usually kept," Patel said.
 
Police said that thief did come back Thursday night.  A glass pane in the front door was again smashed at Lancaster Pharmacy on Woodland Drive, but this time the thief didn't get anything.
 
"It hurts.  It hurts at the end of the day," Patel said.
 
It's not his first experience with this crime either. Channel 9 first met Patel in Rock Hill in 2012 when his Cherry Road store was hit.  Bizarre surveillance video in that case showed a man hitting the drive-thru window with an ax more than 30 times.   That suspect was later caught.
 
Early Friday morning, an alarm also sounded at L-R Pharmacy on airport road in Lancaster.  Police believe the same man hit that business within hours of the burglary at Patel's store. The owner at L-R didn't want to comment on camera, telling Channel 9 he was still busy adding up all the medication that was stolen.
 
Later Friday morning, Lancaster County Sheriff's deputies were working with police looking for a possible suspect, 32-year-old Greg Faile.
 
They stopped Faile in his car, and told Channel 9 it was loaded with prescription pills.
 
Together, police and sheriff's deputies have charged Faile with three pharmacy burglaries. Channel 9 was told more pills were discovered at his home on Clark Place in Lancaster.
 
Some regular customers at Lancaster Pharmacy were shocked to see the damaged front door, and saddened that the business was a target.
 
"It's ridiculous. What are you going to do, put steel bars all over your place to keep them out?  That's what it's coming to," said Wayne Threatt, who had just picked up a prescription.
 
Faile's bond is expected to be set Saturday morning.

WSOC