Pharmacy installs robbery deterrent device

A small Uniondale pharmacy Thursday became the first such store on Long Island to get a DNA deterrent to robberies.

At a news conference outside the Uniondale Chemists drugstore, state Sen. Kemp Hannon (R-Garden City) touted the device as a way to apprehend and deter criminals who steal synthetic opiates and other prescription drugs.

The device hangs above the store's front door, and is activated by an employee from behind a counter. When the robber passes underneath, a motion sensor triggers a spray containing plant DNA.

The indelible fluorescent mist is made visible by a special light, and the "presence of the marker provides forensic evidence" of the linkage to the crime, according to the manufacturer, Applied DNA Sciences of Stony Brook.

On Long Island, the system so far has been installed only at Gold Coast Bank sites in Suffolk, according to the company.

"In light of the increasing number of pharmacy robberies, some of which have resulted in murders, many business owners are anxious to make their premises as secure and safe for themselves and their customers as possible," said Hannon, who as chairman of the Senate's health committee is pushing for a statewide plan to combat prescription drug abuse.

"Shootings at a Medford pharmacy left four dead last Father's Day, while off-duty ATF agent John Capano was shot accidentally on New Year's Eve while trying to stop a robbery at a Seaford pharmacy.

Donald Cantalino, owner of the Uniondale drugstore, said store owners and workers are increasingly concerned about coming to work.

"And I don't want to have to work from behind bulletproof glass, which is very impersonal," Cantalino said. "I think this [device] can make a difference."

James Hayward, chief operating officer of Applied DNA, noted that signs warning that "intruders will be marked, traced and convicted," on doors and windows also act as deterrents.

The system device costs about $2,200 with installation and, after the first year, an additional $1,000 a year.