Ex-pharmacist Burger to be arraigned next month

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ST. CHARLES – The former head pharmacist at the now-closed Burger Drugs will be arraigned Feb. 13 on charges he illegally sold prescription drugs.

Kane County Circuit Court Judge T. Jordan Gallagher set the date Wednesday for Mark L. Burger, 41, of Elburn, to hear the formal charges against him.

Burger is charged with multiple counts of possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver, unlawful possession of a controlled substance, unlawful possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver within 1,000 feet of a school, unlawful acquisition of a controlled substance, and one count of unlawful delivery of a controlled substance.

Surrounded by family members, Burger declined comment. One of his attorneys, Sandra Parga, referred comment to another attorney, Gary Johnson, who could not be reached for comment Wednesday afternoon.

Assistant State’s Attorney Kelly Orland said prosecutors first became aware of the investigation in March from the Illinois State Police’s North Central Narcotics Task Force. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and the Illinois Department of Professional Standards also were involved in the investigation.

Court documents filed in April to search Burger’s home on Melbourne Street state that Burger sold painkillers for $1 a pill, without a prescription, from the store during the past three years.

Court documents state that police found more than $9,000 in cash, along with the pills, in Burger’s home, and that DEA officials determined Burger Drugs had more than double the amount of methadone and hydrocodone orders when compared to similar pharmacies in the area.

Burger’s pharmacist license was suspended indefinitely in June for dispensing controlled substances without a valid prescription, according to the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation.

The pharmacy closed last July. Owner Bob Burger – Mark’s father – attributed the closing to a poor economy and competition from larger stores.