Persistent theft prompts Walgreens closure in Maryland’s White Oak Shopping Center

WHITE OAK, Md. (7News) — The Walgreens in Maryland’s White Oak Shopping Center was a staple for many years, but now it has closed for good. Like many high-profile businesses in this part of Montgomery County, including a downtown Starbucks a few miles away, former employees and customers told 7News they closed because of a theft and crime problem.

Police recently added mobile security cameras to the parking lot around the stores. A source told 7News that the management company of the shopping center fired their security company and hired a new one.

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Last year, there was an armed robbery inside Walgreens, with a man and a woman taking an unknown amount of money and products. Throughout the DMV, robbery has become an alarming problem, with stores being ransacked by mobs of young people.

A woman told 7News Reporter John Gonzalez that she is afraid to get out of her car in the shopping center’s parking lot sometimes because she has seen women get assaulted and robbed.

“You can simply be walking and they take your purse and start running and they leave you with nothing. That’s why when I’m here before I get out of my car I always look around first,” Rodriquez said.

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Walgreens’ corporate announced earlier this year that they plan on closing about 150 stores throughout the country. A replacement for the store in the White Oak Shopping Center has not been announced. The struggling shopping center is still waiting for something to take over the Sears location, which has sat vacant for more than three years.

“Yeah, it’s not good, because everyone is complaining. This is the only pharmacy we have in this area and suddenly they close, we don’t understand,” said resident Kokou Eafbo.

The shopping center was once a thriving shopping destination in Montgomery County, but crime has taken its toll.

“There are so many delinquents here, they get into small groups. They rob and steal, they don’t even wear a mask. And they take off with so much, they break the windows. I’ve even seen them take the cash register,” added Rodriquez.

7News reached out to the county’s regional director about the crime and what could replace the Walgreens. No response has yet been received.