One arrested, Dayton police seeking more in attempted drug scam

DAYTON — One man was arrested for a scam that would have put dangerous drugs on the street. Dayton police are searching for several other people who were involved in the scam.

A man came into a local pharmacy on Valentine’s Night around 7 p.m. and provided an ID that did not belong to him, Dayton police reported. The sale was denied. About 20 minutes later, a vehicle went through the drive-thru lane to attempt to pick up the description. That person also did not have a proper ID and the sale was denied again.

Employees called police, who discovered that the prescription was for promethazine with 300 milliliters of codeine syrup. A Dayton detective said the combination is a main ingredient for a street drug called “lean” or “purple grape.” The combination cannot be bought over the counter, but on the street is has a value of a thousand dollars.

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The next day, another man tried to pick up the prescription and employees called police again. The man who tried to pick up the prescription ran when police pulled up, but he was arrested, officers said.

The man they arrested had a pocket knife, a prescription bottle and receipts from a pharmacy on Wilmington Avenue for a prescription he had paid cash for. The suspect told police his name was Antonio Watkins and had an ID card that confirmed the name. Two days later, police confirmed the name was fake and that his name is Ricardo Rucker. Because of the scam the employees uncovered along with what Rucker did when police caught him, he is facing several charges through the Montgomery County Court System.

Dayton police reported that Rucker was arrested in 2017 for attempted deception to obtain a dangerous drug and say that was also a pharmacy prescription pick-up.