Credit cards belonging to an elderly woman who was the victim of an armed robbery in Pontiac were found last week inside an Oxford Village apartment at 62 E. Burdick St. during a search conducted by detectives from the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office and Michigan State Police.
The apartment is where 27-year-old Jacob Wyatt lives. He’s a suspect in the crime that took place Oct. 21 outside a Rite Aid drugstore at 360 Martin Luther King Blvd.
Wyatt is currently lodged in the county jail on an unrelated drug possession charge while the robbery investigation continues.
A 69-year-old Ohio woman was unlocking her vehicle door in the Rite Aid parking lot when she felt someone pulling the purse strap looped around her shoulder, according to the sheriff’s office.
During the struggle with robber, the woman fell to the ground. She told investigators the robber was armed with a handgun.
A female passerby observed the incident, thought it was a domestic situation and stopped to help. This witness told investigators she saw a man carrying a purse enter the passenger side of a dark-colored truck with a paper plate in the rear window. A white female was observed driving the truck, according to the sheriff’s office.
The witness called 9-1-1 and proceeded to follow the truck until someone in the vehicle allegedly pointed a gun at her.
The next day, a state police detective assigned to the sheriff’s Pontiac substation received a tip linking Wyatt to the robbery.
Four days later, Wyatt, who was driving a 2004 light blue Dodge Ram pickup truck with extended cab, was arrested during a traffic stop made by a sheriff’s deputy at N. Perry and Walton in Pontiac.
Some suspected heroin and a pellet gun were found in Wyatt’s vehicle, according to the sheriff’s office. Investigators said Wyatt admitted to having a drug problem, but did not confess to the robbery.
Wyatt was charged with one count of possession of a controlled substance (heroin) less than 25 grams and arraigned before visiting Judge Thomas Brookover in Pontiac 50th District Court. His bond was set at $25,000.
He’s due back in court Nov. 5 for a preliminary exam conference.
Wyatt’s criminal record includes a 2011 conviction for domestic violence out of the Rochester Hills 52-3 District Court and a 2010 conviction for driving on a suspended license out of the 72nd District Court in Port Huron.
The identity of the female accomplice in the robbery is still under investigation, according to the sheriff’s office.