Armed Pharmacy Robberies In VA, MD Send DC Man To Prison

WASHINGTON, DC — A Washington, D.C., man was sentenced Wednesday to 13 years in prison for a series of armed robberies at pharmacies in Prince George's County, Maryland, along with Alexandria and Manassas, Virginia.

Floyd Neal, 31, of Washington D.C., was sentenced for his role in the 2021 gunpoint robberies of pharmacies, said U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves. Neal pleaded guilty on March 18, 2024, in federal court to three counts of interference with commerce by robbery and aiding and abetting (also known as Hobbs Act robbery). He also pleaded guilty to using, carrying, and possessing a firearm during a drug trafficking offense.

In addition to the 157-month prison term, Neal was ordered to serve five years of supervised release.

According to court documents, on Feb. 14, 2021, Neal and two co-conspirators robbed a pharmacy in Henrico, Virginia. Neal approached the pharmacy counter with a firearm, and ordered the pharmacist to hand over codeine, hydrocodone, and oxycodone. Neal held one employee at gunpoint while a co-conspirator demanded the pharmacist open the prescription safe, the thieves took prescription narcotics and amphetamines, and fled.

On March 25, 2021, Neal and a co-conspirator held up a pharmacy in Alexandria, Virginia, wearing yellow construction vests and posing as customers. Then the co-conspirator shouted: “Give me all the money,” and indicated he had a firearm. The men ordered two employees into the store’s office before taking between $7,000 to $10,000 from the safe.

The third pharmacy robbery happened on March 31, 2021, in Beltsville, Maryland. One suspect went behind the counter, grabbed a store employee, and demanded the code to the store’s safe. While the robbery was in progress, the store’s manager entered the store, and was forced to open the safe and the robbers stole its contents. Neal remained at the front of the store to empty the cash registers.

On April 1, 2021, Neal and a co-conspirator held up a pharmacy in Manassas, Virginia. One employee locked herself in the back office while another employee ran to the front where a suspect grabbed them by the neck. Threatening the employees, Neal ordered them to give him “percocets and oxys” or else he would hurt them, prosecutors said.

Neal also ordered an employee to open the cash registers. Police arrested Neal and the co-conspirator after they fled the pharmacy. A search turned up a loaded 9mm firearm near the pharmacy.

Each of the pharmacies robbed by Neal is part of a national chain of retailers and the robberies impacted interstate commerce, authorities said.