CITYSCAPE ROUNDUP:Drugstore robberies may be connected

As authorities investigate two hold-ups at pharmacies in which the robber demanded the painkiller OxyContin, they say they are seeing connections to similar sprees in cities throughout the county. Meanwhile, the Crime Stoppers organization has announced a $1,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of suspects in the stick-ups.

At 10:15 a.m. on Feb. 8, a man in his 20s wearing dark clothes and a black baseball cap handed pharmacists at the CVS pharmacy at 18872 Beach Blvd. a note demanding OxyContin and saying he was armed, police said. When a clerk gave him the drug, he ran away, Huntington Beach police Det. Jim Allard said.

The robber is likely connected to a similar hold-up Jan. 17 in which two men walked into the CVS pharmacy at 19121 Beach Blvd. and obtained OxyContin using a similar note. Police have released surveillance photos of the men hoping the public might be able to help identify them, Allard said.

Though the first hold-up involved two robbers rather than one, often someone brings a friend along when attempting a new crime, Allard said.

Other pharmacies have been hit recently with similar crimes in Orange County, Allard said, including Costa Mesa, Newport Beach, Orange and Corona. Not all may be connected, he added.

“Our two may be related to Costa Mesa only because of the proximity,” he said. “We’re still analyzing all the surveillance videos and photos.”

Costa Mesa has suffered three such robberies recently, on Feb. 2, 3 and 11. All three occurred at Rite-Aid drugstores, all three involved a note and in each incident the robber was a slim man in his 20s wearing dark clothes and a cap with a handgun in his waistband.

Allard attributes the upward spike in robberies to the price OxyContin — which he describes as “synthetic heroin, basically” — fetches on the black market.

“They can get $25 to $35 a pill,” he said. “Just like anything else, it’s supply and demand.”

Anyone with information about the Huntington Beach robberies is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1(888)-4RXTIPS.

Student wins bill proposal contest

Huntington Beach Sen. Tom Harman has selected a winner for his “There Oughta Be a Law” contest, which invited local students to propose an idea for a bill. Marina High School junior Christine Kim, of Huntington Beach, took the prize for her suggestion that high school students be required to complete a number of hours of volunteer work to graduate.

Kim, 17, who volunteers at Fountain Valley Regional Hospital, flew to Sacramento Tuesday to introduce the bill for consideration and have lunch with Harman.

“I think it’s important to volunteer, because once you learn how to volunteer when you’re young, when you get older you’ll know better how to volunteer and be connected,” Kim said by phone from the state capital. “It’s a great way to give back to your community.”

She got to officially submit the bill to the assembly to be stamped and added to those that will be assigned to committees for discussion.

“It was really, really cool,” she said. “I thought that was a great experience that I don’t think I would ever forget.”

And it’s an experience Kim may seek again. She likes history, she said, and may consider a career in politics.

“Prior to coming here, I thought I’d want to be a doctor. But now that I’m here, I think I want to have a change of plans, because it seems really interesting,” Kim said.

Calling all surf filmmakers

The call is out for submissions for the Fifth Annual Huntington Beach Surf Theatre Film Festival. The festival, sponsored by Big Red Productions, takes place during the U.S. Open of Surfing from July 20 to 25 at the Pierside Surf City 6 Cinemas in downtown Huntington Beach.

The fledgling tradition of roasting surf legends will continue, with Robert August being this year’s honored guest.

Films will be awarded in four categories, including Best Corpo Video (funded by a major surf brand), Best Independent Filmmaker, Most Innovative and Hot Grom Short for filmmakers under 18 years of age. Hot Grom films must be under 15 minutes in duration. Big Red Productions will arrange a panel of surf film aficionados, journalists and producers to judge the films.

For those planning a video release this year, Big Red recommends calling for submission instructions. Contact Leslie Carlos at (714) 842-4338 or [email protected]. Visit www.bigredprod.com for more information.