John Joseph Morton, Jr., accused of robbing the Parsons Rite-Aid at gunpoint, waived his right to a preliminary hearing in Tucker County Magistrate Court on Tuesday, July 23. The case has been bound over to the Grand Jury for consideration.
According to a press release from the Parsons Police Department, Morton allegedly held a gun to the back of a Rite-Aid pharmacist and demanded drugs. The incident occurred on July 16 at approximately 4:30 p.m. and Morton was apprehended at 9 p.m. less than a mile from the store.
The pharmacist was not harmed and Morton fled the store after grabbing three bottles of Percocet containing 300 pills. Two bottles were recovered, along with the gun used in the robbery.
Jonathan E. Jones, Parsons Chief of Police, along with the Tucker County Sheriff’s Office, The West Virginia State Police and the US Forest Service worked in unison to apprehend Morton in short order. He was transported to the Parsons Police Department, where after receiving his Miranda Rights, he confessed to the robbery.
His bond was reduced from $250,000 cash to $200,000 cash and Morton is currently being housed in the Tygart Valley Regional Jail. The case is bound over to the Grand Jury which is slated for Oct. 1.
