It’s not just painkillers. There’s a huge global blackmarket for cancer drugs. Also, aids, diabetes, heart medicine - you name it. These medicines are hard to get in some parts of the world. Even here in the US, patients with lousy insurance or who are on fixed income struggle to acquire necessary medications. Also, some drugs - you know how it’s cheaper to buy them from online pharmacies? This is partly how those pharmacies acquire their cheap pills.
Delivery drivers, who handle prescriptions in bulk, would have no trouble finding a buyer for anything they can swipe.
Actually, I think the other explanation of them not being sure what meds were in it and just hoping for a score seems more likely. I think it would be harder to fence drugs that may be expensive but have no recreational advantage than drugs that have a clear recreational use, like the speed they got the first time. And also it’s likely they would probably be hoping for something they could use themselves.
I’ve seen prescription medicines shipped in a plastic envelope. I don’t see any way to open it without it being obvious that was done. And I’ve seen computers shipped in cardboard with printed packaging tape. Again, any tampering would be obvious. Plus the UPS drivers I’ve seen have really tight delivery schedules. It’s hard to imagine them taking the time to go through packages to look for the expensive stuff.
I doubt they’d open the envelopes and reveal them. If I received my meds from my online pharmacy there is no way I’d trust them to not have been tampered with. So I’d call the pharmacy and want replacements. They’d call ups and complain and ups would have to follow up.
I would think that any package that turns out to be worthless gets tossed into the trash. Otherwise, how do you explain it reappearing in perfect condition, except that it’s obviously been opened & re-sealed? :dubious:
ETA: I’m sure that when they found speed the first time, they added your address to their list of “People who get good stuff!”
It is, but I don’t know what there is to be done about it. We know someone signed for the package but, strictly speaking, we don’t know who, and certainly we can’t prove it.
Back when it first happened, I assumed one of our neighbors signed for it and would have it for us, and UPS just took whatever they scribbled to be the name on the door/package (although presumably the package would have been addressed to my brother, not my stepfather). I don’t suspect our neighbors, by the way, because it’s a small building (four apartments) and everyone is friends.
If questioned, that’s probably the scenario that the driver(s) would offer: someone in the building signed for it, I don’t know who, it was a long time ago … at which point there’s nothing for us to say, except “nuh-uh.” The cops would possibly be justifiably skeptical of us, anyway: patients are forever claiming to have “lost” drugs with a high potential for abuse. As far as they know, someone at my Mom’s apartment really did sign for it, but decided to keep it for themselves (which is unlikely for various other reasons, for the record).
Really, my main motivation for starting this thread is because I don’t see any consequences coming for anyone, and that annoys me. If UPS employs thieves and seems to show no interest about that fact, then hopefully one person sees this thread and decides to go with USPS or FedEx next time. Petty, but there it is.
My pharmacy, one of the larger HMOs, will mail, via UPS, your maintenance medication. They will not mail the stuff someone might want to steal. For that, you have to make a personal appearance. Maybe that’s the answer.
I believe the pain medicines that are controlled substances cannot be sent by mail order. My father is on some serious pain meds for his back pain and they have to go in person to the doctor’s office, pick up the paper script and deliver it to Walgreens. After that, they can pick up the meds in person.
I’m kind of surprised that the OP was getting speed via mail order.