Gerard Gaffney, Armed Pharmacy Robbery, Pennsylvania 2021

The streets of Dauphin County were shaken by a brazen armed robbery at a Rite Aid pharmacy on March 28, 2019. Gerard Gaffney, a 19-year-old from Mount Ranier, Maryland, played a crucial role in this heinous crime as the driver of the getaway car.

According to Acting United States Attorney Bruce D. Brandler, Gaffney and his codefendants, who were masked and armed, stormed the Rite Aid on Union Deposit Road, pointing weapons at the heads of the staff. The robbers forced the employees to surrender a stash of pharmaceuticals before making their escape to the waiting getaway car.

The police were hot on their heels, responding swiftly to reports of the armed robbery and pursuing the getaway car as it sped away. The high-speed chase ended with the car crashing, and three occupants, including Gaffney, were apprehended. The police also recovered bottles of stolen pharmaceuticals and a stolen firearm from codefendant David Marable.

Marable had previously pleaded guilty to the robbery and brandishing a firearm in furtherance of the robbery, and was sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment.

The case was a collaborative effort, investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Lower Paxton Police Department, and the Swatara Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael A. Consiglio is prosecuting the case.

The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Gerard Gaffney was sentenced to 84 months’ imprisonment on April 26, 2021, by Chief U.S. District Court Judge John E. Jones for his role in the armed robbery.

Gaffney, along with his codefendants, had driven to the Rite Aid with plans to rob it. With Gaffney waiting outside in the getaway car, the masked robbers entered the pharmacy and pointed weapons at the staff, forcing them to surrender the drugs before escaping to the getaway car. Police responded to reports of the armed robbery and pursued the getaway car as it sped away from police.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program aimed at reducing violent crime and making neighborhoods safer. The PSN program brings together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to develop effective strategies to reduce violent crime.

Defendant: Gerard Gaffney

Criminal Charges: Armed Pharmacy Robbery, 18 U.S.C. § 924(c)(1)(A)(ii)

City and State: Harrisburg, Pennsylvania

Date: March 28, 2019 (crime date), April 26, 2021 (sentencing)

Sentence: 7 years’ imprisonment (84 months)

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