'It's changed everything about me': Armed robbery victim continues to struggle 6 months later

On Jan. 30, Sheila Ottey was getting ready to close up the CVS at 5859 Tryon Road with her two coworkers when two masked men came in, one of them armed. That’s when she said her nightmare began.

"I can remember thinking when he walked through that door, 'Oh my God, this is not happening,'" she said Wednesday. "The suspect held me by the arm and placed a gun to my head, and we walked to the office where the money was being counted."

Ottey, who works full time in a law office, is on leave from CVS. She has been in therapy since the armed robbery.

"It's changed everything about me. I'm not the same person I was prior to January 30. It's been hard to move forward," she said.

Ottey said part of the reason it's been hard to move forward is that she's encountered a mountain of red tape getting CVS to pay her medical bills.

WRAL News reached out to CVS on Ottey's behalf. Two days later, after getting more documentation from her, the company is now processing her worker's compensation claim.

"I feel like they have made it hard for me to get the funds," Ottey said.

She said she has also refiled paperwork multiple times for an employee assistance fund that she recently learned she was eligible for.

"Ms. Ottey has thus far declined to submit the required documentation needed to complete the application process. If she does provide that information, the Employee Relief Fund will be happy to expedite her application," CVS said in a statement.

For Ottey, it’s less about money and more about feeling like the company cares.

"It's an emotional struggle for me," she said.

Christopher Purnell and Anthony Burton were charged in a string of armed robberies, include the one at the CVS. Purnell faces nine charges related to the crimes and is being held in jail on a more than $1 million dollar bond. Both men are due back in court on July 23.

CVS released the following statement in response to Ottey's situation:

"The safety and well-being of our employees is a top priority. Following a robbery that occurred last January at our Cary store on Tyron Road, we offered free counseling services to our store employees, including Ms. Ottey. She did file a claim for worker’s compensation last month, but our worker’s compensation provider only received the required medical documentation from her yesterday. Now that the documentation has been submitted, her claim has been accepted and she will receive worker’s compensation.   

We are very proud of the CVS Health Employee Relief Fund, which helps our colleagues during unanticipated and unavoidable financial hardships and emergencies by providing short-term, immediate financial relief to employees who have suffered significant hardship as a result of a natural disaster, family death or medical emergency. CVS colleagues can apply to the Employee Relief Fund for emergency hardship assistance with their health care expenses.

However, as the Fund is a 501c3 non-profit, IRS regulations require that proper documentation of those expenses be included in the application. Ms. Ottey has thus far declined to submit the required documentation needed to complete the application process. If she does provide that information, the Employee Relief Fund will be happy to expedite her application."