GPS Device Clears Man of One Crime but Reveals Violation

UPDATE

A parolee arrested Sunday in a downtown purse nabbing is not their man, police said Wednesday.

However, Justin Tyson's alibi—the GPS monitoring device around his ankle showing he had not been at the crime scene— gave police cause to keep him in jail, as the monitor indicated he had violated the conditions of his parole, Manhattan Beach Police Officer Stephanie Martin said in a news release.

Shortly before 1 a.m. Sunday, Tyson, a Fontana resident, was identified by two witnesses as the man responsible for a robbery that occurred at Highland Avenue and 9th Street earlier that night. A woman waiting for friends at the location had been approached by a man who asked her for a cigarette before making off with her purse. The fleeing suspect was also seen by a second witness.

Upon receiving a 911 call, police units responded to the area and searched for the suspect. Due to "similarities in clothing and appearance," police detained Tyson within a half-mile of the incident. He was then identified by the victim and the witness as the person who had snatched the purse. Police also discovered he was on parole for carrying a loaded firearm. Tyson was arrested on suspicion of robbery and booked at the MBPD station.

"However, further investigation revealed that he may not have committed the crime," said Martin.

Tyson's parole agent told police that Tyson's ankle monitor placed him in Manhattan Beach at the time of the robbery, but not at the location at which it occurred.

However, as a condition of his parole, Tyson is restricted from traveling outside a set perimeter and his visit to Manhattan Beach was a violation of that condition. So although police have cleared him of any connection to the robbery, Tyson remains in custody on a parole violation, said Martin.

Sunday's street robbery was the second within the last week in the same general area of Highland Avenue. The first robbery occurred at 10:24 p.m. June 2 near Highland Avenue and 11th Street. The suspect approached a woman who was walking with a male friend, grabbed her arm and wrestled her purse from her before running away.

Police said the suspect or suspects responsible for each of the two robberies remain at large.

For a complete list of personal safety tips released by the police department, click here. Anyone with information on the incidents is encouraged to call MBPD Det. Sgt.  Brian Brown at 310-802-5123.