An armed man walked into Nature's First Pharmacy on Rockaway Beach Boulevard on Saturday, August 22, demanded property at gunpoint, then headed to the back of the store and pulled medications out of a refrigerator before running off on foot. More than two weeks later, police still haven't identified him, and NYPD Crime Stoppers is now asking the public for help tracking him down.
According to NYPD Crime Stoppers
, the robbery happened at approximately 1:28 p.m. at the pharmacy located at 87-02 Rockaway Beach Boulevard, inside the confines of the 100th Precinct. The unidentified suspect displayed what appeared to be a firearm, demanded property from the store, then removed medications from a refrigerator in the back before fleeing on foot to parts unknown, the bulletin states. Nature's First Pharmacy is an independent community and long-term care compounding pharmacy that also offers multi-dose packaging, durable medical equipment, and home delivery, according to
Nature's First LTC & Compounding
.
The location adds an unsettling wrinkle to the case. The pharmacy sits roughly five blocks from the NYPD's own 100th Precinct stationhouse at 92-24 Rockaway Beach Boulevard, per NYC.gov, meaning the midday stickup unfolded just a short walk from the local police command that now has to solve it. The precinct, commanded by Captain Sachi Singh, serves a southern portion of the Rockaway Peninsula, including Rockaway Beach, Belle Harbor, Arverne, and Breezy Point.
A Block With a Recent History of Trouble
This isn't the first commercial robbery to hit this stretch of Rockaway Beach Boulevard this summer. On July 8, a separate robbery took place directly across the street at 87-15 Rockaway Beach Boulevard, where two supermarket employees were punched by suspects who stole merchandise and fled, Hoodline previously reported on that Key Food incident. Two commercial robberies within weeks of each other, on opposite sides of the same block, have put local business owners on edge.
The theft of medication specifically from a refrigerated unit also raises the stakes beyond a typical retail robbery. Federal DEA regulations under 21 CFR Part 1301 address physical-security requirements for controlled substances, while separate provisions address written notification to the local DEA Field Division office of any theft or significant loss, according to Envigilance. That same source notes that nearly 900 pharmacy burglaries and robberies involving controlled substance thefts were reported nationwide in 2023 alone, underscoring that pharmacies remain a recurring target for individuals seeking drugs to use or resell.
Potential Charges if Suspect Is Caught
Under New York Penal Law § 160.15, forcibly stealing property while displaying what appears to be a firearm constitutes Robbery in the First Degree, a Class B violent felony that carries a mandatory minimum of five years and up to 25 years in state prison, according to FindLaw. If investigators determine the suspect was carrying a loaded, operable firearm without a valid permit, he could also face weapons charges.
Crime Trends Across the Precinct
The pharmacy robbery comes as citywide crime statistics remained a focus in 2025, though precinct leadership has continued to focus on felony assaults and violent, armed incidents. Just weeks before the pharmacy robbery, NYPD Crime Stoppers issued a similar public appeal after a 15-year-old boy was slashed on an A train at the nearby Beach 67th Street station in July, one of several recent violent incidents that has kept the peninsula's police command busy this summer.
Anyone with information about the pharmacy robbery is asked to call the NYPD Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477), or for Spanish speakers, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). Tips can also be submitted through the Crime Stoppers website at crimestoppers.nypdonline.org or by direct message to @NYPDTips on X. NYPD Crime Stoppers is offering a reward of up to $3,500 for information that leads to an arrest and indictment in the case.
