A Gardiner man was sentenced to three years in federal prison Tuesday for robbing a Rite Aid pharmacy in Bridgton on Thanksgiving in 2013.

Robert Richard, 26, pleaded guilty last October to the federal charge of interference with commerce by robbery.

In the robbery, Richard wore a dark, hooded sweatshirt with the hood up, sunglasses and a bandanna and gave the pharmacist a note saying, “All your oxycodone now!” according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office. He fled in a car with a concealed license plate number.

In Portland on Tuesday, U.S. District Court Judge D. Brock Hornby ordered Richard to serve three years of supervised release after the prison term and to pay restitution of $138.24 for the benefit of the pharmacy and a special assessment of $100.

Working on the investigation were the FBI; police in Bridgton, Augusta and Gardiner; and the sheriff’s departments in Kennebec and Androscoggin counties.

Investigators had video footage of the robbery, which occurred about 2:15 p.m. Initial reports indicated a second person drove the getaway vehicle. However, it does not appear that anyone else was charged in the robbery.

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Richard was indicted in September 2014 and arrested shortly afterward, according to records in federal court. The indictment says Richard took the prescription medication from a Rite Aid employee “against the employee’s will by means of actual and threatened force, violence, and fear of immediate injury to his person.”

Richard was represented by attorney David Beneman of the Federal Public Defender’s Office.

Betty Adams — 621-5631

badams@centralmaine.com

Twitter: @betadams


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