Man pleads not guilty to drugstore robbery

A Placentia man pleaded not guilty Tuesday to stealing more than $1,300 worth of razor blades, pain medicine and lip balm from three drugstores.

Fountain Valley police arrested John Loftus, 52, and transient Lisa Campbell, 44, for commercial burglary after an officer spotted Loftus fleeing a Rite Aid on Saturday. Loftus was charged and pleaded not guilty to second-degree burglary, grand theft and receiving stolen property, according to court records.

Campbell was released from custody Tuesday, according to Orange County Sheriff’s Department records, but Sgt. Eric Orahood said she could still be charged.

A man matching the description of Loftus was seen by a Walgreens employee filling a handbasket full of razor blades and lip balm before fleeing the store Jan. 20 in a brown or gold Chevrolet S-10 pickup truck, officials said. Loftus was captured on the store’s surveillance videos. The loss was reported to be $751 worth of merchandise.

Loftus is believed to have committed the same crime at a CVS drugstore on Magnolia Avenue around 2 p.m. Thursday. The value of the merchandise is being determined, officials said.

An officer was patrolling the parking lot of a Rite Aid elsewhere on Magnolia on Saturday when he spotted Loftus leaving the parking lot in the pickup truck. Another officer caught up with the pickup, and Loftus and Campbell were inside.

Police uncovered $667 worth of Tylenol and Aleve from the Rite Aid and located the merchandise stolen from the other stores, officials said.

Orahood said he believes the merchandise was going to be resold. The items taken are easy to resell and are untraceable, Orahood said.

The two described their relationship as friends, and Campbell is believed have acted as a driver and look-out, Orahood said.

Officers are still investigating the incident, looking for other stores that might have been hit, Orahood said.

“I’m going to guess these aren’t the only incidents,” he said.

Loftus is being held at the Theo Lacy Facility in Santa Ana and is expected to begin preliminary trial Friday.

— Britney Barnes