A pharmacist charged with stealing more than 1,500 highly addictive prescription pain pills from the Lancaster Township pharmacy where he worked, then altering the pharmacy’s records in an attempt to cover his tracks will have his case proceed to county court after waiving his preliminary hearing earlier this month.

Nathan James Bear, of the 1900 block of Marietta Avenue in East Hempfield Township, waived his preliminary hearing before Judge Mary Mongiovi Sponaugle on March 2 on 20 different offenses including a felony count of obtaining possession of a controlled substance and a single count of tampering with records.

Bear, 53, is accused of stealing the pills and other items on at least 15 separate occasions between July and December 2025 from the Weis Pharmacy in the 1200 block of Millersville Pike where he worked.

Covert surveillance footage from within the store showed Bear concealing customers’ legitimate prescriptions in his shirt sleeves, then depositing the pills, usually in increments of 100, into his lunch box to take home. Bear could also be seen on the footage stealing other retail goods including food and electronics without paying for them.

The store’s internal investigation also revealed that Bear manipulated computer data and drug order history to make it appear as though the drugs he stole were being issued legitimately.

In an interview with store officials Bear admitted to stealing the substances to support his drug addiction.

Store officials had begun an internal investigation in December after noticing the controlled substances were missing, then reported their findings to Lancaster Township police.

Bear is currently free on $10,000 unsecured bail.

Lancaster Township Police Det. Josh Whiteside filed the charges.

All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty.