Richard Hall of Twickenham Close, Swindon will appear at Swindon Crown Court at the end of January for charges related to “wounding with intent, possession of a class A drug, theft and burglary”, a spokesperson for Wiltshire Police told C+D.

“The burglary relates to a break-in at Lloydspharmacy in Shaw Village Centre” on November 9 last year, while other charges relate to “a stabbing at an address in Castleton Street, Middleleaze” on November 13, 2021, the spokesperson added.

Mr Hall first appeared in Swindon Magistrates Court on November 16, a week after the alleged burglary, where he was charged.

He was remanded in custody, where he remains until his next appearance at Swindon Crown Court later this month, the spokesperson confirmed.

Mr Hall is next due to appear in court on January 27, a spokesperson for Swindon Crown Court told C+D yesterday (January 17).

No pharmacy workers harmed during incident

A spokesperson from Lloydspharmacy confirmed to C+D last week that its Lloydspharmacy branch in Swindon “experienced a burglary on November 9, 2021”.

“Fortunately, no colleagues were harmed during the incident, and we supported the police fully in their inquiry,” they added.

“We’re grateful for the dedication and professionalism shown by our colleagues as they returned the pharmacy to order,” the spokesperson concluded.

Last week, C+D revealed that police forces in England, Wales and Northern Ireland received at least 15,858 reports of crime – which included episodes of violence – committed in pharmacies in 2019 and 2020 alone.

Meanwhile, in October 2021, a Surrey Lloydspharmacy branch was forced to shut for one day, forcing patients to go elsewhere to collect their medication, after a man smashed the front door of the branch to steal an undisclosed sum of money.