Burglary ring in Jefferson City could be linked to national trend

A string of burglaries are under investigation in Jefferson City, and they could all be linked back to a national phenomenon called the “purple drank.”

It’s a syrupy mixture that contains cough medicine, promethazine.

One Jefferson City pharmacy has been hit by burglars twice in 2 weeks, most recently Tuesday night.

Last week, the Whaley’s East End Pharmacy was burglarized. The cough medicine promethazine was taken from the store. It also contains codeine.

The “purple drank” mixture that it’s used for can be fatal, but it’s attractive to first time drug users.

Typically it’s mixed with a soda such as Mountain Dew, or a Jolly Rancher.

Last year, the same store was burglarized, and the same drug was taken, just like last week.

A white male suspect is wanted for those two heists, and they believe it could be the same man.

Tuesday night the store was hit by two different suspects, black men wearing t-shirts over their heads.

However, they threw a rock at the plexi-glass and weren’t able to get into the building.

Last week, a nearby antique shop was also hit on High Street. The investigation continues.