Man linked to multiple violent crimes across Pittsburgh
A 23-year-old West Mifflin man is facing charges in connection to several violent crimes reported across Pittsburgh.
Tyler Johnson was most recently charged Thursday in the brutal attack and robbery of a father who was playing with his four-year-old son at a playground.
According to court documents, the assault occurred last September at the Herschel Park in Elliot.
Johnson and two other suspects reportedly confronted the father at random and at gunpoint, threatening and attacking him. They robbed him of several items, including his keys.
According to police, one of the suspects briefly drove off with the man’s car but it was located by police close to the scene.
Using the stolen information, later that day, court documents allege that Johnson and three other suspects then went to the victim’s home and attempted to break in. The attempted burglary was caught on camera.
Two suspects in that attempted home invasion have been identified by police as Naquan Brown and Maurice White, who are both in custody and facing charges.
Brown appeared before a Scott Township magistrate judge on Thursday. He declined to comment when confronted by Channel 11 News. His private attorney, Rachael Santoriella, told Channel 11 that she looks forward to viewing the surveillance video but otherwise had no comment. The victims declined to comment.
Records show that Johnson has been behind bars since Dec. of 2022.
Channel 11 dug into his background and determined that he is facing charges in other violent and armed attacks on people in Pittsburgh.
Johnson has been named as a suspect in a case from Nov. of 2022, wherein a Jitney driver was threatened and forced to flee a traffic stop. Prentis Rose, 22, of Pittsburgh was also charged in that case.
Johnson has also been named as a suspect in a violent home invasion and robbery reported in July of 2022 on Tacoma Street. In that case, court documents claim three suspects held a woman and her young children at gunpoint.
Court records show that Magistrate Judge Leah Williams Duncan last month dismissed all of the charges against Johnson in both cases. Channel 11 contacted Judge Duncan’s court to ask why that decision was made. At the time this article was published, we had not received a response.
Records show police have re-filed the charges against Johnson in both cases.
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