AUSTIN, Texas — A Houston man has been charged in connection with a “jugging” incident in southeast Austin after investigators say GPS data placed him at the scene where $2,000 in cash was stolen from a driver.
According to an affidavit filed by an investigator with the Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA) , Mekhi Isaiah McKinstry, 21, of Houston, is accused of following a man from a Chase Bank on Riverside Drive before breaking into his vehicle and stealing cash from the console.
The incident occurred at around 12:37 p.m. on August 27 at the LCRA Dalchau Service Center at 3401 Montopolis Drive.
Investigators say the victim withdrew $2,000 from the bank to pay for landscaping services. After stopping for lunch, he drove to the LCRA facility and parked his gray Honda CR-V. Minutes later, security notified him that his car window had been shattered and the money was gone.
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Two witnesses reported seeing a black Kia K4 with tinted windows leave the scene. One witness told police they saw a tall, thin Black male with dreadlocks break into the victim’s vehicle and grab something from inside.
Surveillance video from multiple locations — including the Chase Bank, Raising Cane’s, and LCRA facilities — showed the same black Kia following the victim’s vehicle throughout the day.
On September 22, McKinstry was arrested by Highland Park Police in Dallas County for a separate attempted jugging incident. Investigators say the car, rented from Hertz at Houston Hobby Airport, was equipped with GPS tracking data that showed McKinstry’s movements on the day of the Austin theft.
GPS data from both the rental car and McKinstry’s court-ordered ankle monitor placed him at the Chase Bank, Raising Cane’s, and LCRA Service Center during the time of the incident.
At the time, McKinstry was out on personal bond for a felony credit card abuse charge in Harris County. He was arrested and later charged with jugging, a third-degree felony.
McKinstry is behind bars at the Harris County Jail. His bond was set at $25,000 for the Austin “jugging” case.