An Oakland man who was among five people arrested in connection with a holdup at gunpoint in Beverly Hills was charged Monday with robbery.
Gangster Lawson, 23, is charged with one count of second-degree robbery, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.
The District Attorney’s Office cited insufficient evidence in declining to file a case against two other 18-year-old Oakland men, Xavier Ford and Nasir Blocker. Jail records show that the two, who were arrested last Thursday by Beverly Hills police, were released from custody Monday.
The status of any potential case against two teenage boys, ages 16 and 17, was not immediately available.
Beverly Hills police said last week that a city employee notified police after seeing the robbery in the 8600 block of Wilshire Boulevard at about 4:53 p.m. last Thursday in which a Rolex watch was taken.
Investigators were able to identify and locate the suspects’ vehicle, but the driver refused to pull over, sparking a short pursuit.
A Los Angeles Police Department helicopter crew aided in the chase and followed the vehicle into Hollywood, where the suspects exited the car near Afton Place and North El Centro Avenue, according to Beverly Hills Police Department Lt. Andrew Myers.
“BHPD officers and officers from the LAPD Hollywood Division quickly established a containment. After the search, all five suspects were arrested, and evidence related to the crime was recovered from the vehicle,” Myers said in a statement.