Two charged in Pleasanton armed robbery

Two men accused of robbing a person at gunpoint in Pleasanton late last month have been formally charged with second-degree felony robbery, according to documents from the Alameda County District Attorney’s Office.

The two defendants — Tyrell Antoine Brown, 24, and Andre Kaith Ryan, 24 — are currently not listed in the county’s “Inmate Locator” systems, which indicates that they are no longer being held at the Santa Rita Jail. According to their criminal dockets, both of their bails were set at $50,000.

News of their arrest first surfaced on Feb. 4 when the Pleasanton Police Department posted on its social media pages that two suspects were arrested for robbery and possession of stolen property.

According to a probable cause declaration prepared by Pleasanton police Officer Nickolas Skaggs, PPD received a call on Jan. 30 just before 1 p.m. from a business owner who reported that one of their employees was robbed at gunpoint in the Huntswood Court neighborhood.

The employee stated in the report that the two suspects, who were later positively identified by the victim based on photos provided after their arrest, wore ski masks while they robbed him of his wallet, cell phone and two of the business owner’s laptops, according to Skaggs.

The robbers also stole the victim’s wallet, which contained a $1,200 company credit card that also belonged to the business owner, before they took off in a black Honda Accord, according to police.

But authorities allege the suspects had the whole thing carefully planned out as they followed the victim from Antioch — where the victim had made a cash withdrawal from a bank — to Pleasanton.

“During the initial investigation, the reporting party advised he left a bank in Antioch after withdrawing $8,000 to pay his employees,” according to Skaggs. “A review of fixed (automated license plate reader) camera records in the area captured the reporting party’s pickup truck traveling westbound on Bernal Avenue in Pleasanton … three seconds after the pickup truck was captured by the fixed ALPR camera, a black Honda Accord with tinted windows and black wheels was captured following behind the victim’s pickup truck.”

After completing a registration check of the vehicle and confirming the owner was located in Antioch, PPD received a notice from the business owner who said their stolen credit card was used in a CVS.

According to Skaggs’ report, the robbers used the card to buy birthday cards and a Visa gift card at the store, which led Pleasanton police to notify the Antioch Police Department to be on the lookout for the vehicle.

Then, around 6 p.m. the same day, Antioch police officers located the vehicle on the intersection of L St and Loma Lane in Antioch. There they arrested Brown, who is from Vallejo, and Ryan, who is from Antioch.

“A review of our arrest data shows that the majority of individuals arrested by the police department are not Pleasanton residents,” PPD Chief David Swing told the Weekly in a statement. “There are several reasons why this occurs; however, primarily because many people come to Pleasanton from outside the area for our shopping, employment and dining. Pleasanton does not exist in isolation. Being at the intersection of two major interstates in a metropolitan area rich in diversity means that the diversity of those we serve is greater than diversity of our community.”

Skaggs alleged that upon arrival he located in the trunk of the car the stolen laptops, a gun that matched the description from the victim and the CVS items that Ryan was caught on camera purchasing.

“Based on the information collected, the victim’s positive ID of the suspects, the suspect vehicle being captured by ALPR cameras following the victim’s vehicle, the stolen property being recovered from the suspect’s possession and my training and experience, I placed both Ryan and Brown under arrest for robbery and possession of stolen property,” Skaggs stated in his report.

Both of their preliminary hearings will take place on Feb. 15 at 9 a.m. Brown is also actively on probation in Solano County for carrying a concealed firearm, which means he will face a second charge of possession of a firearm by a felon, according to court documents.