As part of their campaign against the black market for prescription narcotics, the NYPD will today announce a plan to hide GPS tracking chips in “bait bottles” to be placed on pharmacy storage shelves.
Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly was expected to unveil the plan Tuesday at a La Quinta, Calif., conference on health issues hosted by former President Bill Clinton’s foundation. In prepared remarks provided in advance of his appearance, Kelly says the initiative was prompted by a spate of high-profile crimes associated with the thriving black market for prescription drugs, including the slaying of four people on Long Island during a pharmacy holdup in 2011. He also cites the case of a retired NYPD officer who, after retiring with an injury and getting hooked on painkillers, began robbing drug stores at gunpoint. Prescription drug abuse “can serve as a gateway to criminal activities, especially among young people,” the commissioner says. “When pills become too expensive, addicts are known to resort to cheaper drugs such as heroin and cocaine. They turn to crime to support their habit.”
Presumably pharmacy workers will be well trained to never dispense the bottles to customers. I suppose this is the digital version of the exploding dye packs used by banks.