A Randolph man is now charged with lying to police about an armed robbery, in which the supposed suspect was already arrested and arraigned.
STOUGHTON — A Randolph man was charged Friday with lying to police about an armed robbery -- a week after another man was charged in that robbery, which police now say didn't happen.
Police responded to 106 Porter St. about 11:50 a.m. on Jan. 19 for a report of an armed robbery that had occurred 10 minutes earlier.
"The apparent victim, Paul Foxworth, said he knew the suspect as Daniel Ostiguy," police Lt. John Bonney told The Enterprise on Friday.
Foxworth told police that Ostiguy picked him up and brought him to the Shaw's Plaza on Washington Street to cash a check.
"Foxworth got back in the car and they started driving," Bonney said. "Foxworth then claimed that Ostiguy pulled out a knife and demanded the money. He described the knife in detail and described the car as a red Nissan."
Police ran Ostiguy's name and determined he lived in Randolph. That town's police went to the house and located the vehicle matching the description that Foxworth gave. Police surrounded the home and Ostiguy ran out the back door and was taken into custody.
"We had probable cause to arrest and charge, based on the victim's statements, the knife description, the car and he knew who the suspect was," Bonney said.
Ostiguy, 34, was charged with armed robbery and assault with a dangerous weapon. He was arraigned the next day in Stoughton District Court and released.
But police say they quickly learned that their suspect wasn't actually a suspect.
As part of the booking process the day he was arrested, Ostiguy's phone was seized and he gave police permission to search it. The next day, police were able to analyze the information, including text messages.
"It didn't match up to what Foxworth had told us," Bonney said. "He made up the entire story."
After Ostiguy was released at court, he voluntarily showed up at the Stoughton police station and asked to meet with a detective to give a statement.
Ostiguy told police that he and Foxworth had gone to Taunton to get heroin that day and that they later had an argument about the drugs. Ostiguy then asked Foxworth to get out of his car.
"There were text messages in which Foxworth threatened to kill Ostiguy," Bonney said. "These were all prior to him calling us to say that he was robbed."
Police then went to Foxworth's home on Wednesday to arrest him on an unrelated warrant. When he encountered the officers and detectives, he tried to flee, Bonney said. An officer suffered a hand injury during the arrest that required treatment at an urgent care facility.
Foxworth, 30, of Randolph, is charged with knowingly misleading the police, threatening to commit a crime, making a false report to a public safety dispatcher and making a false report to a police officer.
On Feb. 16, when Ostiguy was scheduled to appear in court for a pre-trial hearing on the armed robbery charge, police will ask the judge to drop the charges. Bonney said the men will not face any drug charges in Stoughton because the purchase occurred in another town.
Foxworth will be arraigned on the charges at a later in Stoughton District Court.