Little blue pill now among drugs found in police raids

ATHENS - Add Viagra to the list of drugs like Ritalin, Xanax and Oxycodone found when police conduct search warrants in Athens, officials say. <br> <br> The little blue impotency treatment pill, introduced by drug maker Pfizer Inc. in 1998, has become one of the most popular prescription drugs on the market. <br> <br> It&#39;s popularity makes it that much more favored by in-house thieves, said Rick Allen, who helps regulate Georgia&#39;s pharmacies as deputy director of the state Drug and Narcotics Agency. <br> <br> ``There&#39;s a huge underground market out there,&#39;&#39; Allen said. ``Internal pilferage (at pharmacies) is our biggest problem.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> Sgt. Mike Hunsinger, commander of the Athens-Clarke Drug and Vice Unit, said he thinks most of the Viagra found in drug seizures was legally obtained through a prescription then diverted for non-prescription sale. <br> <br> ``It&#39;s just unusual,&#39;&#39; Hunsinger said. ``It&#39;s very uncommon to for us to come across dangerous drugs that don&#39;t have the effect of making someone high.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> One Cobb County pharmacy technician was charged with stealing a quarter-million dollars in Viagra in a year, Allen said. The suspect was released on bond, got another pharmacy job and stole thousands of dollars more in the diamond-shaped pills before being caught, he said. <br> <br> Some people who don&#39;t suffer from impotence take Viagra as a party drug, falsely believing it acts as an aphrodisiac or performance enhancer. <br> <br> ``There are even women getting it,&#39;&#39; Allen said. ``You can get it, if you know the right people.&#34;

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