Bail set at $10G cash for Peabody man who stole cough syrup from CVS

SALEM – A Peabody man accused of robbing a bottle of cough syrup from a CVS Pharmacy in December remains held at the Middleton Jail on $10,000 cash bail.Stephen Sharry, 51, of 2 Hoover Ave., pleaded innocent to unarmed robbery Wednesday morning in Salem Superior Court.As jointly requested from the prosecutor and defense, Judge Howard J. Whitehead set the same bail amount as previously established in District Court, but agreed that the defense may seek a bail review hearing at another court date.It was shortly before 5 p.m., on Dec. 31, when a man, later identified as Sharry, walked into the CVS Pharmacy location at 535 Lowell St., Peabody, approached the pharmacist and demanded cash.The holdup man said he had a gun in his pocket, but didn?t get any cash and instead grabbed a bottle of cough syrup and fled the store on foot.Police quickly responding to the scene arrested Sherry nearby on Bourbon Street. During a pat frisk, a tube of toothpaste was found in his pocket. Police believe the toothpaste was the bulge he had in his pocket, which he indicated to the pharmacist was a gun.A conviction on the unarmed robbery charge carries a potential life sentence in state prison.His next court appearance is scheduled for March 31.Because of the new arrest, Sharry faces a violation of his probation on previous robbery convictions.Assistant District Attorney Marcia H. Slingerland is prosecuting the case for the commonwealth.Lawrence J. McGuire is the court-appointed defense attorney assigned to represent Sharry, since he has been deemed indigent. Because he has no funds to hire his own attorney, the state will pay all costs, but Sharry has to pay a $150 fee towards the legal representation.