Indiana Natives Plead Guilty for 2019 Attempted Armed Robbery of Uptown CVS Which Resulted in Shooting of NOPD Officer

 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans announced on Tuesday, May 21, 2021 that RICHARD SANSBURY, age 28, and ALAN PARSON, age 20, residents of Indianapolis, Indiana, plead guilty to the three count Indictment for their participation in the June 17, 2019 robbery of the CVS pharmacy located at 4901 Prytania Street.

At approximately 6:06 a.m., SANSBURY and PARSON entered the 24-hour pharmacy, armed with weapons.  Both wore hooded sweatshirts and blue medical gloves.  Upon entering the store, SANSBURY removed a firearm from his waistband, went behind the front counter, and detained a cashier by using zip-ties.  SANSBURY led the cashier to another area of the store.  PARSON relocated to the rear of the store, in the pharmacy area, and forced another employee to the ground before securing the employee’s feet with zip-ties.  PARSON then filled a large trash bag with several pill bottles that he retrieved from the pharmacy’s safe.  SANSBURY relocated to the pharmacy area where he continued to zip-tie the employee’s hands whom PARSON initially detained.

Upon exiting the store, PARSON and SANSBURY engaged in a shootout with responding officers of the New Orleans Police Department.  The confrontation resulted in one of the officers suffering a bullet wound to the shoulder.  Video surveillance captured the robbery as it occurred from both inside and outside the pharmacy.

SANSBURY and PARSON plead guilty to conspiracy to commit a robbery involving a controlled substance, in violation of Title 18, United States Section, 2118.  Both face a maximum sentence of 10 years of imprisonment, a fine up to $250,000.00, a period of up to 3 years supervised release, and a mandatory special assessment of $100.00.  Additionally, SANSBURY and PARSON plead guilty to armed robbery involving controlled substances in violation of Title 18, United States Sections, 2118(a) and (c)(1).  Both face a maximum sentence of 25 years of imprisonment, a fine up to $250,000.00, a period of up to 5 years supervised release, and a mandatory special assessment of $100.00. Lastly, SANSBURY and PARSON plead guilty to discharge of a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, in violation of Title 18, United States Sections, 924(c)(1)(A)(iii).  SANSBURY and PARSON each face a consecutive mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years up to life imprisonment, a fine up to $250,000.00, a period of up to 5 years supervised release, and a mandatory special assessment of $100.00.

United States District Court Judge Greg G. Guidry will sentence SANSBURY and PARSON on August 24, 2021.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigations and the New Orleans Police Department.  It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys David Haller and Brittany Reed of the Violent Crime/Strike Force Unit of the U.S. Attorney’s Office.