An Oakdale man was arrested on suspicion of armed robbery at Walgreen’s on West F Street on Monday morning, July 30.

According to the Oakdale Police Department, 911 dispatchers received a call from the Walgreen’s pharmacist at 8:07 a.m. Monday, stating a man inside the store wanted to talk to the police about a murder. The subject, later identified as Vernon Dewayne Odom, 47, took the phone from the pharmacist and said he wanted to provide information about a murder that occurred in Ceres years ago.

After getting the pharmacist back on the phone, the police learned that Odom had a knife and was in the process of robbing the store for prescription medications.

When police arrived on scene, they quickly evacuated employees and other customers out of the store. Police searched the store and found Odom at the rear of the pharmacy with the pharmacist.

Responding officers were able to convince Odom to release the pharmacist and then took the man into custody, but not before he was able to put a handful of pills into his mouth.

“It was so many they were coming out of his mouth as he was in the process of chewing them,” said Police Sergeant Joe Johnson.

Odom was transported to Oak Valley Hospital for the drug ingestion and to be medically cleared for booking for armed robbery, kidnapping, and other felonies.

Johnson said Oakdale Police and Ceres Police have also been in contact about the homicide information Odom provided.

Though shaken up by the experience, there were no physical injuries reported to store employees or patrons during the incident.