Smithsburg pharmacy robbed at gunpoint

Cavetown man in custody

October 14, 2008

SMITHSBURG -- A Cavetown man was taken into custody Monday night after the Rite Aid Pharmacy at 22441 Jefferson Boulevard was robbed at gunpoint by a man carrying what he claimed to be an explosive device, according to a press release from the Washington County Sheriff's Department.

The device turned out to be a hoax, officials said.

Christopher Allan May, 28, of 22535 Cavetown Church Road, was charged with armed robbery, theft and multiple counts of assault, reckless endangerment and handgun violations, including the use of a handgun in the commission of a violent crime, the release said. He was being held on $300,000 bond this morning at the Washington County Detention Center, a spokesman there said.

At 9:05 p.m., a man entered the pharmacy in the Village Square Shopping Center carrying a shoebox. He spent some time inside the store "acting suspicious" before being approached by an employee, the release said.

The man then pointed a handgun at the employee and directed her to the pharmacy area of the store, where he pointed the gun at two other employees and demanded that a gym-style bag be filled with prescription drugs, the release said.

The man fled the store but left the shoebox behind after telling employees that it was a bomb and would detonate, the release said.

When deputies arrived on the scene, the man was seen fleeing the store's parking lot and running across Md. 64. During the pursuit, the man ran through yards in the area and pointed his handgun at a resident of Old Georgetown Road, the release said.

The man was captured on Old Georgetown Road after a Taser was deployed. A loaded 9mm handgun and a large amount of prescription medications were recovered, the release said.

The Hagerstown Police Department's bomb detection dog and the State Fire Marshal's Office were called to the pharmacy. The shoebox, which had been taken outside the building by police, was opened by a remote-controlled robot, the fire marshal's office said. The device was determined to be a hoax.

No one was injured during the incident, the release said. Smithsburg police, fire and emergency rescue personnel were also on the scene.

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