DC man to spend 13+ years in prison for spree of pharmacy robberies

WASHINGTON ( DC News Now ) — A man was sentenced to over 13 years in prison on Wednesday for his role in a spree of pharmacy robberies throughout Maryland and Virginia in 2021.

Floyd Neal, 31, of Washington, D.C., pleaded guilty in March to three counts of interference with commerce by robbery and aiding and abetting; and using, carrying and possessing a firearm during a drug trafficking offense, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office (USAO).

On Valentine’s Day in 2021, Neal and two co-conspirators traveled to a pharmacy in Henrico, Va. Neal went up to the pharmacy counter, pulled out a gun and ordered the pharmacists to hand over codeine, hydrocodone and oxycodone.

He held one employee at gunpoint while another person demanded the pharmacist open the prescription safe, according to court documents.

After grabbing the prescribed narcotics and amphetamines, the three fled in a red SUV.

Just over a month later, on March 25, 2021, Neal and another person entered a pharmacy in Alexandria, Va. while wearing yellow construction vests. They posed as customers by grabbing beer, then the co-conspirator shouted “Give me all the money” and indicated he had a gun.

The men ordered two employees into the store’s office and took between $7,000 and $10,000 before fleeing.

On March 31 of that year, Neal and two others drove to a third pharmacy in Beltsville, Md. One of his accomplices went behind the counter, grabbed an employee and demanded the code to a safe in the store.

The manager entered the store while the robbery was in progress and one of the conspirators forced them into the back office where Neal was watching the other employee. The manager was forced to open the safe while Neal emptied the contents of the cash registers at the front of the store.

Then, the trio fled.

The next day, on April 1, Neal and one other person went to a fourth pharmacy in Manassas, Va. One employee locked herself fin a back office. Another employee ran to the front where the co-conspirator grabbed them by the neck.

Neal threatened the employees and ordered them to give him “percocets and oxys” or else he would hurt them, according to the USAO. He also ordered an employee to open the cash registers.

Police arrested Neal and his accomplice as they fled. They also found a 9mm gun near the pharmacy.

Since the pharmacies are part of a national chain, Neal’s robberies impacted interstate commerce.

After his prison sentence, Neal will also serve five years of supervised release.

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