Major Chain Drug Retailers Robbed at Gunpoint
Armed robberies were recently reported at Walgreens, CVS, and Rite Aid pharmacies across the United States.
A man wearing a black motorcycle helmet to conceal his face allegedly brandished a sawed-off shotgun while demanding Xanax from a Walgreens in Newhall, California, on October 23, 2014.
Santa Clarita County Deputies charged Brandon Villegas, 22, after locating the alleged getaway vehicle at a home in Valencia, California, The Santa Clarita Valley Signal reports. Police surrounded the location after receiving information that the suspect or his relatives lived at the location.
Villegas allegedly surrendered without incident, and was charged after Walgreens employees identified him.
Elsewhere in California, police in Fremont charged a man in conjunction with a robbery at a CVS Pharmacy on October 21, 2014.
According to an article published by the San Mercury News, the suspect allegedly entered the store around 3:30 a.m. and passed a note stating he had a gun to a pharmacy clerk, though he did not brandish any weapons.
Police later located the suspect in an apartment complex, where he surrendered without incident.
At a different CVS pharmacy in Kansas City, Missouri, a man allegedly made terroristic threats and held an employee hostage before being shot by police on October 22, 2014.
Brandon Sampson, 23, is being held on $100,000 bond and is in critical condition at an area hospital, The Kansas City Star reports. Allegedly, Sampson threatened to kill everyone at the pharmacy that night and pulled a pharmacy employee outside. The employee was able to run away once outside.
Sampson allegedly lunged at an officer who was dispatched to the scene with a pair of shears, and was then shot in the abdomen. No other injuries were reported.
Yet another CVS pharmacy in Florida was robbed at gunpoint on October 21, 2014.
Although the Miami Police Department is still searching for a suspect, a man allegedly went to the store’s photo-processing center, handed an employee a note, and produced a pistol from his waistband, WPLG Local 10 reports.
The suspect allegedly fled in a car that police believe is a gold 4-door Nissan Altima. The suspect was last seen wearing a long sleeved, dark blue Old Navy sweater, a blue cap, and sunglasses.
The Spotsylvania County, Virginia, Sheriff’s Office is seeking the identity of a man suspected of robbing a Rite Aid on October 22, 2014.
Authorities described the suspect as a white male in his 20s who is about 6 feet tall, weighs roughly 105 pounds, and allegedly wore a gray hooded sweatshirt and blue jeans during the crime, The Free Lance-Star reports. The suspect allegedly approached the pharmacy counter with a note demanding medications and then showed the clerk a concealed weapon.
After receiving the medications, the suspect fled on foot in an unknown direction.
A male Corinna, Maine, resident has been charged with robbing a Rite Aid in Guilford nearly 2 years after the incident occurred.
Michael Thompson, 26, allegedly confessed to the crime following a July police chase involving a stolen truck, the Portland Press Herald reports. He was arraigned October 17, 2014.
During the 2012 robbery, Thompson allegedly threatened pharmacy staff with a knife, demanding drugs and money. He allegedly drove off in mail truck after a witness moved his getaway car.
