Ohio man wrongfully arrested, jailed in Memphis for 5 months

MEMPHIS, Tenn. - An Ohio man is searching for justice and accountability after serving five months in jail for a crime he didn’t commit.

Anthony Robertson, 39, told FOX13 that he lived in Memphis for most of his life, but moved to Ohio last year. In late January, he was contacted by U.S. Marshals who told him there was an active warrant out for his arrest in Shelby County. The next month, he said they were at his door.

“I just see like Marshals, like with their shields up, like with rifles and they like, 'Put your hands up and come down the steps!” he told FOX13 on a Zoom call.

He said he wasn’t initially told what the warrant was for, but soon found out the charges – aggravated kidnapping, aggravated rape and other violent charges.

“All I could remember saying is, 'No sir, no sir! Y’all got to have the wrong person. That’s not me,'" Robertson told FOX13.

Robertson said he was held in an Ohio jail for a month and then extradited to the jail at 201 Poplar, where he remained until July 3, four months later.

“It was just detrimental. I was was saying like, 'Every day, I got up every day expected to lose my life, you know, on some charges that had absolutely nothing to do with me,” he said.

The mix-up: an active warrant out for 36-year-old Anthony Roberson, a repeat offender who has been indicted at least twice for rape and kidnapping. At the time of Robertson’s arrest, Roberson was already in custody at the jail.

Robertson, 39, was still not released immediately.

“It still triggers me to see officers just coming toward me, even though I know I haven't done anything," Robertson said. "It's just, like, affecting me and I think is going to continue to affect me for the rest of my life.”

Since his release, Robertson said he returned to Ohio. He said he not only lost his job, but he also deals with PTSD. His record is now expunged, but he's still fighting to hold the right people accountable.

“The claim, if you will, is going to be largely about the balls that were dropped,” his attorney, Andre Wharton, told FOX13. “If you got an individual in custody, I’d imagine human error took place, and I know we’re all human, but at the end of the day, the person who ends up suffering when there’s a human error is usually a human being like Anthony.”

FOX13 has reached out to multiple agencies about this mix-up. Criminal courts said they have no record of Robertson, which makes sense since it was expunged.

The Shelby County District Attorney’s office said it is looking into this information.

The Shelby County Sheriff’s Office sent the following statement, explaining the warrant process:

"In Tennessee, arrest warrants are typically issued by a judge or magistrate when there is probable cause to believe that a person has committed a crime. This process generally begins with law enforcement officers, prosecutors, or victims filing a sworn affidavit or complaint outlining the alleged offense. The judge or magistrate then reviews the evidence presented and, if sufficient cause is found, issues an arrest warrant.

Once issued, the arrest warrant is forwarded to the appropriate law enforcement agency, including the sheriff’s office, for execution. The sheriff’s office takes all reasonable and necessary steps to ensure the correct person is taken into custody in accordance with Tennessee law. The warrant outlines the specific charges and authorizes the sheriff's office to detain the individual until they are brought before the court. The warrant typically provides personal identifying information, including links to the individual’s fingerprints, when possible, and deputies check all of that to confirm the correct person is in custody. There are times when another person’s identifying information is mistakenly placed on the warrant, and that circumstance must be corrected by the courts.

Sheriff’s deputies must execute the warrant within the scope of legal procedures, including respecting the individual’s constitutional rights, such as protection against unreasonable search and seizure."

FOX13 will continue investigating what led to Robertson's arrest.