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A Clarksburg High School teacher was charged on Friday with two counts of armed robbery.

Montgomery County Police say Brendan Fuller Friedman, 41, of the 5400 block of McGrath Boulevard in North Bethesda, robbed a grocery store in Bethesda and a bank in North Bethesda between 3:35 and 5 p.m. Friday.

Police said a man entered a Safeway at 5000 Bradley Blvd. at 3:25 p.m., displayed a handgun at the pharmacy counter and demanded Xanax and OxyContin. He fled on foot with the drugs before police arrived.

The robber was described as being between 5 feet 9 inches and 6 feet tall. Witness told investigating officers the robber wore a blue surgical mask, a black knit hat, a black jacket and a black hooded sweatshirt. He carried a duffel bag.

About 90 minutes after that robbery a man wearing a black hooded sweatshirt, blue jeans with a white design on the rear pockets and black suede shoes demanded money from a teller at the M&T Bank at 5910 Executive Blvd. The robber carried a black backpack. He displayed a note implying he had a gun and demanded cash, county police spokesman Capt. Paul Starks said. The robber fled on foot with an undisclosed amount of money.

Friedman was arrested at 7:45 p.m. Friday after police, acting on a tip, stopped his vehicle as he was driving south in the 8800 block of Georgia Avenue in Silver Spring.

"We received information that for right now we don't want to divulge," Starks said.

Items related to the crimes were recovered when he was arrested, Starks said.

Each count of armed robbery carries a potential penalty of 20 years in jail, District Court Judge Barry A. Hamilton said during a bond hearing Monday afternoon.

Friedman appeared for the hearing via closed circuit television from the Montgomery County Detention Center in Rockville.

After conferring with defense attorney Barry Helfand and Assistant State's Attorney Lynn Nixon, Hamilton agreed to postpone the hearing until Friday.

Helfand said afterward that he requested the continuation because he had not yet had a chance to meet with his client.

"According to the statement of charges, he was caught with the replica gun, money from the bank, the OxyContin, the same note the state says the robber used to extract the drugs — where I come from that doesn't look good," he said.

Helfand said he is requesting a psychological examination of his client, who has a master's degree from Johns Hopkins University and no previous criminal history.

Friedman's parents, who live in Rockville, and girlfriend were in court for the proceedings, Helfand confirmed after the hearing. His mother began crying the moment he appeared on the television monitor.

Helfand said he plans to ask the judge to release Friedman to his parents' custody on Friday.

Friedman is in his second year of teaching biology and matter and energy at Clarksburg High School, according to the school Web site.

He has worked for Montgomery County Public Schools since 2005, said Dana Tofig, Montgomery County Public Schools spokesman. He was a substitute teacher until he earned his certification and was hired to teach at Clarksburg, Tofig said.

The school system has placed Friedman on administrative leave with pay until his case is resolved in the court system, which is school system policy, Tofig said.

Clarksburg Principal James Koutsos posted a letter to parents on the school Web site Monday to inform them of the incident and let them know he is looking for a substitute teacher with science certification to teach Friedman's classes. Koutsos referred all questions from The Gazette to the school system spokesman.

A check of an online court database found that Friedman's only previous citation in January was for failure to attach registration plates to his car. At the time he was living in the 18600 block of Queen Elizabeth Drive in Brookeville.