COLUMBIA, SC — For the second time in less than a week, a man has robbed a local pharmacy of controlled substances such as pain medications.

The latest incident occurred Saturday morning at the Walgreens Pharmacy located at 7412 Broad River Road.

Witnesses said the man, shown in surveillance photos, approached the pharmacy counter, lifted his sweatshirt to show what appeared to be a gun in the waistband, and demanded drugs from behind the counter. The pharmacist complied and no one was hurt, the police said.

The man was described as a white male with facial hair, possibly a goatee. He was last seen wearing a light-colored hoodie, white or tan baseball cap and blue jeans.

In the earlier incident, on January 28, a white male who obscured his identity by wearing a surgical mask, walked up to the pharmacy counter at the Rite Aid at 1501 Broad River Road and demanded several controlled substances. He also showed what appeared to a gun in the waistband of his pants.

The suspect in Saturday’s robbery fled the scene in an older model dark blue 4-door pick-up truck that may have damage on the left side, Columbia police said.Witnesses said the truck may have hit another vehicle while fleeing the scene.

Columbia police are investigating whether the two pharmacy robberies were committed by the same person.

If you hve any information about these robberies, Columbia Police Chief Randy Scott asks that you contact Crime Stoppers at 1-888-CRIMESC.

-- Rachael Myers Lowe