Police report a Buxton man, arrested in possession of OxyContin after he was found walking down the centerline of Route 302 in Casco on Nov. 2, may have connections to two robberies that occurred earlier that day. The robberies took place only hours apart: the first at a pharmacy in Bridgton and the second at a residence in Windham that afternoon.

At 10:30 p.m., Cumberland County Sheriff’s Deputy John Fournier came upon Darell Twitty of Buxton while driving through Casco. Twitty appeared to be under the influence of drugs with pupils the size of “pinpoints” and body “tremors,” according to the police report.

When asked for identification, Twitty gave the name “Lawrence Versaw.” When Fournier found no such name on record, Twitty produced a medical card that revealed his true identity.

Fournier found two warrants for Twitty’s arrest on record, one for unpaid fines and the other for a robbery that had been committed that afternoon in Windham.

In the Windham robbery, Twitty allegedly broke into a residence on Roosevelt Trail at 3:45 p.m. and stole a safe that contained “assorted jewelry, checks, keys and miscellaneous personal effects.”

Police say a search of Twitty revealed several bottles of OxyContin, a prescription painkiller and two syringes in a gym bag he was carrying. The drugs are estimated to have a street value of $42,000.

Police say the OxyContin matched the same stolen from a Rite Aid pharmacy in Bridgton that occurred that afternoon around 1 p.m.

In the incident, a man in a hooded sweatshirt approached the Rite Aid pharmacist, brandished a small silver revolver, demanded OxyContin and took off with the drugs.

“It happened so rapidly that it took everybody by surprise,” said Sergeant Douglas Taft of the Bridgton police who has been assigned to investigate the burglary.

Though stolen narcotics were in Twitty’s possession, police have doubts as to whether he committed the burglary or not.

Police are currently reviewing surveillance tapes from the store.

“At this point in time we’re actively pursuing all leads into the investigation,” Taft said.

Though the Lakes Region has had a few similar robberies connected to OxyContin, the area has been “very lucky” both in the capture of perpetrators and the low number of incidents, says Captain Bill Rhoads of the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Department.

OxyContin is a common substitute for heroin, Rhoads said, and these pharmacy robberies have been an issue for cities like Portland in the past.

Twitty is being held at the Cumberland County Jail, charged with the Windham robbery and “aggravated trafficking” of a Class A narcotic.

The Bridgton robbery is still under investigation. Anyone with new information is asked to call Sergeant Taft at 647-8814.