Amelia A. Pridemore
Beckley police said a Maryland fugitive was arrested and charged with robbing two city pharmacies following a near countywide manhunt.
Robert Swafford III, 27, of Annapolis, Md., was charged with two counts of first-degree robbery and being a fugitive from justice, Detective Cpl. David Allard said. Swafford is charged with robbing both Beckley Pharmacy on Stanaford Road at gunpoint May 18 and Rhonda’s Pharmacy on Robert C. Byrd Drive Tuesday, also at gunpoint.
Swafford is being held at Southern Regional Jail without bond.
Swafford is wanted in Maryland for second-degree escape and failure to appear in court, Allard said.
Also, Rachel Maddy, 27, of Sophia, was charged with one count of being an accessory before the fact to first-degree robbery for her alleged role in the robbery at Rhonda’s Pharmacy. She is also being held at Southern Regional Jail in lieu of $50,000 bond.
Allard said police received a tip on the Beckley Pharmacy last Friday. Police were able to positively identify Swafford. Then, Rhonda’s Pharmacy was robbed, and from suspect and vehicle descriptions given at the scene, they were confident the same person was involved.
Police then searched every area in Raleigh County where Swafford had ties — Coal City, Sophia, Crab Orchard and Beckley, Allard said. They conducted interviews, and they were eventually led to the Econo Lodge in Ghent.
Because police believed Swafford was armed, they decided to utilize the State Police Special Response Team, Allard said.
Swafford was arrested without much incident because a Special Response Team member negotiated with him over the phone, Allard said. Both Swafford and Maddy exited the hotel room at 9:30 p.m. Tuesday and were taken into custody.
Allard also credited the city’s Narcotics Enforcement Division with its assistance in the arrest.
Swafford confessed to both robberies, Allard said. He said he committed both robberies — in which Endocet was taken from Rhonda’s Pharmacy and both oxycodone and Endocet were taken from Beckley Pharmacy — to use, sell and trade the narcotics. He needed the means to support a drug habit and to obtain money on which he could live because he was hiding from Maryland authorities.
Maddy did not confess to her alleged role, Allard said, but with information provided by Swafford and the investigation, police were able to charge her. Swafford drove Maddy’s vehicle to the Rhonda’s Pharmacy robbery and rode with him. They conspired to do the robbery, with Maddy choosing the location and providing the BB gun Swafford used, Allard said.
Swafford used another BB gun to commit the Beckley Pharmacy robbery, Allard said.
Good surveillance systems at the pharmacies were key in solving the robberies and doing so quickly, Allard said. While he acknowledged robberies are a hectic situation, he urged anyone who may be a victim to try and remember suspect and vehicle descriptions — particularly unique aspects of both. What may help is writing these down while still fresh in one’s mind, but only after the situation is safe again.
— E-mail:
apridemore@register-herald.com
