Man charged in Naperville, Niles CVS robberies; accused of threatening workers with needles

NAPERVILLE, Ill. (WLS) -- A man suspected of threatening pharmacy workers with needles he said were tainted with HIV was charged in armed robberies at CVS stores in southwest suburban Naperville and north suburban Niles.

Naperville police said 49-year-old Sanjay Malhotra, who was seen in surveillance pictures with an unidentified woman at the CVS located at 1299 Ogden Avenue, used hypodermic needles as a weapon to steal over-the-counter medications.

Malhotra was also charged in Niles for a similar armed robbery. Niles police said Malhotra pulled out a hypodermic needle during the incident, pointed it at the worker and said, "You don't want what I have."

He and an unidentified woman left the store and got into a light-colored vehicle. Police said they got away with about $600 in over-the-counter meds.

Malhotra was arrested Friday in connection with an armed robbery at the Jewel-Osco in the 2900-block of North Ashland Avenue in Chicago's Lakeview neighborhood.

The female suspect in the Niles robbery is still at large. Police said she was about 5 ft. 5 in. - 5 ft. 9 in. tall, weighed around 135-145 pounds and had light hair. She was wearing a baseball cap, a two-tone jacket and tan pants.