First Defendant Sentenced In String of Philadelphia Pharmacy Robberies
By Steve Tawa
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- A man who admitted to being the getaway driver during at least 16 gunpoint robberies of pharmacies in and around Philadelphia was sentenced today.
Sitting in a wheelchair and in need of a hip replacement, 50-year-old William Webb told the court he was sorry, after which federal judge John Padova sentenced Webb to 25 years in prison.
Webb's defense lawyer sought an institution that could provide medical help and tend to his client's addiction to painkillers.
Assistant US attorney Jennifer Barry says the defendant's problems were no excuse for him to terrorize folks in those pharmacies.
"William Webb, as the getaway driver, did not play an innocuous part in this conspiracy with Edward Schaeffer," said Barry, referring to Webb's codefendant.
According to the indictment, Schaeffer, 29, wore a mask, brandished a gun, restrained victims, and then grabbed prescription drugs, including Percocet and Oxycontin, as well as cash from the cash registers.
Schaeffer has also pleaded guilty, and when sentenced on December 5th, the plea arrangement calls for 32 years in prison.
