GREENFIELD — Three Indianapolis teenagers accused of trying to rob a local pharmacy have been charged as adults, and the main suspect — who police say assaulted a store clerk during the incident — was taken into custody this week.
Police say the trio — two 17-year-olds and a 19-year-old — tried to steal prescription drugs from the CVS Pharmacy in Greenfield, 1233 N. State St., in late September.
State statutes permit that juveniles older than 16 can automatically be waived into adult court for certain dangerous crimes, Deputy Prosecutor John Keiffner said. Robbery or attempted robbery that results in injury falls within those standards.
DeAndre Dixon, 17, of Indianapolis, was arrested this week and remained in the Hancock County Jail on a $30,000 cash bond at press time Thursday. He faces charges of attempted robbery and conspiracy to commit robbery, both Level 3 felonies, according to court records.
Investigators are seeking Rahman Glasco, 19, and Rakim Coleman, 17. Both are Indianapolis natives and face the same charges as Dixon, court records state. An additional passenger in the car was younger than 16 at time of crime and faces juvenile charges, Keiffner said.
Police say Dixon entered the Greenfield CVS and handed a note to the pharmacist, according to court documents.
“We are armed and dangerous,” the message read, instructing the pharmacist to quickly hand over an array of narcotics, court records state.
The pharmacist told police that before he could react Dixon tried to enter the blocked-off pharmacy area. The teen grabbed a bottle of pills sitting on the pharmacy counter and then took off through the store, the pharmacist told police.
In one of the aisles, Dixon met a store clerk who was trying to understand the source of the ruckus near the pharmacy. Surveillance videos from inside the store show Dixon assaulting the man, court records state.
The clerk told police Dixon punched him in face and used a container of laundry detergent to beat him, court documents state.
Police believe Dixon left the store through the pharmacy drive-through window. He then climbed into a car driven by Glasco, police said. Officers pulled the vehicle over near the pharmacy.
Police questioned only Glasco on the night of incident because he was the only one over the age of 18. Parents of the other two involved refused to come to the police station for interviews, court records state.
Glasco told police he had never met Dixon before the day of the robbery. Dixon had paid him to drive into Greenfield and take him to a girl’s house near CVS, Glasco told police.
Glasco said he didn’t know anything about the robbery and wasn’t sure why police pulled them over in the area, records state.
The car Glasco was driving belonged to his mother. The woman gave police permission to search the car. Inside officers found the note used in the robbery and a black jacket they believe Dixon wore during the incident, court records state.
The two Level 3 felony charges the teens faces carry penalties of three to 16 years behind bars.