An Oakland man who had recently been paroled has been charged by the Alameda County district attorney’s office after victims and witnesses identified him as responsible for two robberies in Berkeley in late August.
Authorities said, at 6 p.m. on Aug. 22, a 75-year-old man was walking near Harper and Russell streets in South Berkeley when a robber pushed him down from behind and ordered him to empty his pockets. According to the victim, as described in court documents, the robber spread out the man’s credit cards on the sidewalk, but the victim “pled with the suspect to take only the money.” The robber took $60 in cash from the man’s wallet, then walked away.
An hour later, in the 1900 block of Los Angeles Avenue, near Marin Circle in North Berkeley, a 62-year-old man was walking when a man walked up to him and asked for directions to Albany. The victim said the man then struck him several times in the face: “The victim said he fell to the ground and the suspect continued to hit and kick him while he was on the ground,” according to court documents.
The robber went through the victim’s pockets and took his cell phone, then reached into the man’s back pocket and took his keys, according to police. “After the suspect took the property he said, ‘Son of a bitch, you don’t have any money!'” The robber left and the victim told a passer-by about the incident.
Through the subsequent Berkeley Police Department investigation, authorities said they developed Jahton Green, 27, of Oakland as a suspect. Victims and witnesses identified him, and police said Green had recently been paroled for the robbery of an elderly victim. According to court documents, police said Green’s cell phone records placed him in Berkeley on the night of the incidents above, “very close to the robbery locations.” Green denied being in Berkeley, police said.
The Alameda County district attorney’s office has charged Green with two felony counts of second-degree robbery, with special allegations related to the commission of violent crimes “on the vulnerable” due to the victims’ ages. He also was charged with felony elder abuse in connection with the first robbery.
If found guilty, Green — who has a past conviction in 2009 in Contra Costa County related to robbery, assault with a deadly weapon, home burglary and elder abuse — would receive a second strike, according to court documents.
Green remains in custody at Santa Rita Jail with a bail of $845,000, and is scheduled for a pre-trial hearing Oct. 15. Due to his status as a parolee, he is not eligible for bail.
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