A Houston, Texas, man pleaded guilty in federal court to stealing nearly $7,000 in prescription drugs from a Columbia, Mo., pharmacy.
Reginald Tremayne Jackson, 32, pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Willie J. Epps Jr. to one count of the burglary of a business registered with the Drug Enforcement Administration.
By pleading guilty, Jackson admitted that he broke into the drive-through window at Kilgore’s Medical Pharmacy, 1608 Chapel Hill Road, at approximately 2:26 a.m. on June 4, 2022. Once inside the pharmacy, Jackson used a pry tool to force open a locked cabinet that contained prescription medications. Jackson put the prescription bottles in a green-and-white-striped bag, left the pharmacy through the drive-through window, and got into the rear passenger’s seat of a silver Chevrolet Malibu driven by a co-defendant. The vehicle drove away at approximately 2:31 a.m.
Columbia police officers were able to track the Malibu using a GPS tracking device that had been taken during the pharmacy burglary. Officers located the vehicle at the Ramada Inn, 901 Conley Road in Columbia, and conducted a traffic stop. Jackson was in the rear passenger seat of the Malibu; he and the driver were arrested.
Security video footage from Ramada Inn and the GPS tracking device indicated the vehicle had stopped near the Ramada Inn sign for approximately two minutes prior to the traffic stop. Officers walked the tree line area, where they saw footprints in the heavy dew in the grass, and found the green-and-white-striped bag approximately 15 feet from the edge of the tree line. The bag contained stolen prescription bottles of hydromorphone, methylphenidate, morphine, oxycodone, and Oxycontin. Kilgore’s provided a calculated list of the drugs and quantities stolen for a drug loss value of approximately $6,981.
Under federal statutes, Jackson is subject to a sentence of up to 20 years in federal prison without parole. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.
This case is being prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Heather D. Richenberger. It was investigated by the Columbia, Mo., Police Department, the Boone County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department, and the FBI.
