GUILTY NY - Four people shot to death in Medford pharmacy robbery, 19 June 2011

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http://www.centurylink.net/news/rea...ass&action=6&lang=en&_LT=UNLC_USNWU00L6_UNEWS

Monday, June 20, 2011 [article has picture]

MEDFORD, N.Y. (AP) — Police have reviewed a surveillance video from a pharmacy in a New York City suburb where four people were fatally shot over the weekend, including a 17-year-old girl who was to graduate from high school this week.

Police said Sunday's shootings looked like a robbery gone wrong.

Suffolk County police released photographs of the suspect: a man in his late 20s or early 30s, about 5-foot-8 with a thin build. He has dark hair, was unshaven or has a dark beard and mustache and wore a white baseball cap.

The man was armed with a handgun, stole prescription drugs and killed everyone in the shop before fleeing with a black backpack.

A police spokeswoman said there were no new updates on the investigation Monday; a briefing was planned later in the afternoon. The department's Crime Stoppers program was offering a reward of up to $5,000 for information leading to the arrest of the suspect, whom detectives described as "extremely dangerous."

The shootings happened at about 10:20 a.m. inside a family-owned pharmacy in a small cluster of medical offices in Medford, a middle-class hamlet on Long Island about 60 miles east of New York City.


More at link
 
http://www.longislandpress.com/2011/06/20/cops-reviewing-video-of-medford-pharmacy-massacre/

.....Suffolk County police said the lone gunman walked into Haven Drugs on Southaven Avenue 20 minutes after the family run shop opened at 10 a.m. Sunday. The killer was caught on tape as he shot the pharmacist, his 17-year-old assistant and two customers at close range before he filled up a backpack with unspecified prescription painkillers and fled the scene, police said.

----
The pharmacist, 45-year-old Raymond Ferguson of Centereach, was killed along with his assistant, Jennifer Mejia, of East Patchogue—whose funeral is slated for Wednesday, the day she planned to attend her Bellport High School prom. The two customers include 71-year-old Bryon Sheffield of Medford and Jamie Taccetta, 33, of Farmingville.

-----
Diversion Investigators with the federal Drug Enforcement Agency are on the scene to determine what specific drugs may have been stolen, according to a DEA spokeswoman. She noted that locally based DEA agents have been offering crime prevention tips to Long Island pharmacists after there was a 125-percent increase in pharmacy break ins from 2009 and 2010 across New York State.....Dormer said there are no suspects in the investigation, which is still in its early stages, but police have received a “substantial number” of tips so far.


More at link...
 
This was terrible... we are all shocked by it here on LI. The only thing I have to offer is that I believe and in my opinion: if it occurred in NYC, the murderer would have been caught by now.
 
Robbery gone wrong? And yet allegedly the suspect stole the drugs and killed everyone before he fled. So what exactly would be robbery gone right, I wonder.
 
Fiancé found girlfriend with bullet wound to back of her head
Killer walked by him moments before he entered

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...lls-4-pillhead-painkillers.html#ixzz1PwbB5RSy

The fiancé of a woman slain in Sunday's brutal pharmacy killing spoke today of how he discovered his girlfriend's corpse among four dead staff and shoppers.

James Manzella went to check on 'the love of his life' Jamie Taccetta, 33, after dropping her off at Haven Drugs in Medford, Long Island.

picture.php


Incredibly, Mr Manzella only went to check on Jamie after seeing the bearded killer leave the pharmacy and calmly walk away from the scene.

picture.php


-------
Mr Manzella, an electrician, planned to marry physical therapist Jamie in October.
She had two daughters - Miranda, 16, and Kaitlyn, 5.
A distraught Mr Manzella said he was haunted by the fact he saw the killer moments after the shooting took place.

-------

Yesterday a teenage girl, just days from graduating high school, was identified as 17-year-old Jennifer Mejia, a senior at Bellport High School in Brookhaven.

Yesterday her father, Rene Mejia - an immigrant from El Salvador - described her as a 'wonderful daughter'.

She had worked at the pharmacy for about two years and wished him a happy Father's Day early Sunday morning as she left for work.

Speaking to the New York Post Rene said: 'This morning she told me, 'Happy Father's Day.'
'She was in a hurry to go to work.

'I held her and said, 'It's okay,' because in my country, Father's Day is Friday. I feel better because I held her.'

picture.php


----------
The drug store's owner Vinoda Kudchadkar arrived after the shooting but fainted when he discovered the scene of carnage inside
He was taken to the hospital.

picture.php


Much more information and pictures at link.
 
The victims did not offer any resistance before being shot. So, again, I object to characterizing this as "robbery gone wrong." "Robbery gone wrong" implies something happened to make it go wrong, and what exactly would that be here? No resistance from the victims, no demands by the shooter.

"All four victims "offered no resistance -- and did not appear to provoke the shooter in any way," Suffolk County Police Commissioner Richard Dormer told the newspaper on Monday."

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/us/2011/06/2...ecuted-victims-without-demands/#ixzz1PxFTv9Is

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2011/06/2...uted-victims-without-demands/?test=latestnews
 
Ok this was pretty quick, and I have to congratulate SCPD for doing a fine job with this case. I call a spade a spade- job well done!

http://www.newsday.com/long-island/suffolk/source-arrest-in-medford-shooting-1.2975975

Suffolk police Wednesday morning arrested a Medford man in connection with the quadruple murder at a Medford pharmacy, according to a source familiar with the case.
Police took David Laffer, 33, into custody three days after the murders at Haven Drugs on Sunday, the source said.
Laffer offered some resistance when he was arrested about 10 a.m. at 30 Pitchpine Place, the source said, and he was en route to Yaphank police headquarters.


More at link above or: http://www.newsday.com/long-island/suffolk/source-arrest-in-medford-shooting-1.2975975
 
Suspect is David Laffer, mom Palma Laffer. They have been now named by police as suspects.
 
MrsG728 said:
Ok this was pretty quick, and I have to congratulate SCPD for doing a fine job with this case. I call a spade a spade- job well done!

http://www.newsday.com/long-island/suffolk/source-arrest-in-medford-shooting-1.2975975

Suffolk police Wednesday morning arrested a Medford man in connection with the quadruple murder at a Medford pharmacy, according to a source familiar with the case.
Police took David Laffer, 33, into custody three days after the murders at Haven Drugs on Sunday, the source said.
Laffer offered some resistance when he was arrested about 10 a.m. at 30 Pitchpine Place, the source said, and he was en route to Yaphank police headquarters.


More at link above or: http://www.newsday.com/long-island/suffolk/source-arrest-in-medford-shooting-1.2975975
Click to expand...


Thank you MrsG728 for this great news of the arrests!
 
I'll add this link about the arrests since subscription required for the above link.

http://www.longislandpress.com/2011/06/22/reports-medford-pharmacy-shooter-david-laffer-arrested/

This article states David Laffer and his wife were arrested.

"Reports: Medford Pharmacy Shooter David Laffer Arrested
By Timothy Bolger on June 22nd, 2011

Multiple local news outlets are reporting that 33-year-old David Laffer has been taken in handcuffs out of his Medford home Wednesday morning and that he is the gunman wanted for killing four people at a pharmacy about a mile from the home three days ago.

Laffer and his wife were reportedly taken into custody after up to 40 Suffolk County police officers swarmed a house on Pitchpine Place. Authorities are neither confirming the names of those arrested nor that they are linked to the Father’s Day massacre at Haven Drugs pharmacy."

Picture of Laffer home:

picture.php
 
jjenny said:
The victims did not offer any resistance before being shot. So, again, I object to characterizing this as "robbery gone wrong." "Robbery gone wrong" implies something happened to make it go wrong, and what exactly would that be here? No resistance from the victims, no demands by the shooter."All four victims "offered no resistance -- and did not appear to provoke the shooter in any way," Suffolk County Police Commissioner Richard Dormer told the newspaper on Monday."

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/us/2011/06/2...ecuted-victims-without-demands/#ixzz1PxFTv9Is

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2011/06/2...uted-victims-without-demands/?test=latestnews
Click to expand...

BBM
Thanks, jjenny for your comments. To me, what the police meant by "robbery gone wrong" is that it went wrong for the victims, since they were killed in spite of cooperating/no resistance, which is usually the advice given.
 
Here's how they caught the suspect. I'll refrain from name-calling until they prove it's him.

1. Tips from anonymous people.
2. SCPD calls a special NYPD drug task force in for some help.
3. Pharmacy records are scoured for customers prescribed Oxy., the task force allows SCPD to access a special narc database
4. The Oxy customers are background checked for violations, arrests, etc
5. Laffer comes up with a legal pistol permit.
6. They match surveillance video w/permit picture.


I'll add more as I know more, but there ya go. Ironic that he had pistol permit. :furious: It makes all legal, law-abiding gun owners look like CRAP now. I am sure people will say "see? guns are bad" :banghead:
 
Arraigned today. He pled Not Guilty, of course. No bail, and now these poor families bury their loved ones :(
 
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/ny_...axed__then_he_got_desperate__say_sources.html

Loss of health insurance sparked fast and horrific fall for accused pharmacy killer David Laffer

David Laffer's life began falling apart two weeks ago.

The former Army private, who worked for years as a shipping clerk at scale manufacturer Cosa Xentaur in Yaphank, L.I., was fired, reportedly for stealing.

That meant no more health insurance - and no more prescription pills.

The loss of health coverage was a blow, said Joanna Martino, a one-time friend of Laffer's pill-popping wife, Melinda Brady.

"This past weekend, Melinda was trying to find out if anyone knew what hospital she can go to to get a 'scrip for pain pills," Martino said.

There were other signs of desperation: Laffer, who'd had minor tax judgments against him in the past, signed up for food stamps Friday, Newsday reported.

------------
Laffer was described by neighbors as a quiet and inoffensive man.

"It can't be him. It just can't be. This is a nightmare," said Ziada Ayala, his next-door neighbor on the street of manicured lawns and pools.
 
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