Four men suspected in Sept. 2025 pharmacy break-ins

SCOTT TRUXELL/independent editor

It appears as though recent break-ins at pharmacies in northwest and southwest Ohio may be tied to similar burglaries that occurred in this area last September.

Three intruders went down the line from Defiance County to Van Wert on September 11 – Hicksville Pharmacy and Home at 5:20 p.m., Oukley’s Pharmacy in Paulding at 5:46 a.m., then the Genoa walk-up pharmacy at Westwood Behavorial Center in Van Wert at approximately 6:30 a.m. Just one of the area break-ins was successful – Hicskville Pharmacy and Home, where the intruders stole an unknown amount of narotics from the pharmacy, plus a small amount of cash from the register. They left pharmacies in Paulding and Van Wert empty-handed.

Video footage showed the three men forcing their way through the front door at Westwood. They made off in a black late model Toyota Camry and there were no real new developments until recently.

Four men were arrested February 5 along Interstate 75 in Butler County, after a traffic stop resulted in the recovery of nearly 3,000 stolen opioid pills worth as much as $15,000. They tried to flee but were arrested a short time later by West Chester Police. After further investigation, authorities learned some of the stolen prescription painkillers came from a pharmacy in Bellevue, Ohio, along with cash that was stolen from a pharmacy in Perrysburg.

An official source close to the investigation who requested not to be named said the four are believed to have taken part in such break-ins around Ohio, including the three area pharmacies in September, and throughout the country. The source said rental cars were used in many of the break-ins.

The men been identified as Tyrus Crew Jr., Anthony Ellison, Marcus Fantroy Jr., and Lequan Miller, all from California. Fantroy is a rapper who goes by the name Geechi Gotti. Three of them are suspected to have taken part in the area break-ins, but the source didn’t specify which three.

The four had been under surveillance since one them flew into Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport days before they were arrested.

According to court records, each man is currently charged with four counts of possession of drugs. Crew is also charged with obstructing official business and Fantroy is facing an additional charge of failure to comply with the order or signal of a police officer.

Online records show all four men are currently in the Butler County Jail in lieu of $900,000 bond each. They also have holders placed by other law enforcement agencies.

Their cases have been bound over to a grand jury in Butler County. However, since the break-ins occurred in numerous parts of the country, their cases are expected to be rolled into one and prosecuted by the federal government.