Gardena Athlete Released on Own Recognizance : Jurisprudence: Boykins freed after basketball coach testifies player was in game at time crime occurred, but charges of robbery and assault have not been dropped pending further investigation.

Gardena High standout athlete Demetrius Boykins was released from jail on his own recognizance Thursday after his coach testified in court that Boykins was playing in a basketball game at the time a robbery he is accused of committing occurred.

But police say they will double-check Boykins’ alibi before considering dropping the charges against him. Boykins is charged with one count each of robbery and assault with a deadly weapon stemming from the crime, which occurred in Gardena at 8:35 p.m. on Feb. 15, according to police. He is scheduled to appear at a preliminary hearing April 9 in South Bay Municipal Court.

Gardena basketball Coach Rod Tange said during a bail hearing that Boykins was playing for the Mohicans in a first-round L.A. City Section playoff game against Manual Arts at the time of the robbery. Tange read from a statistica l summary that showed Boykins scored 12 points in the game, which started at 7:30 p.m. and was played at Manual Arts in Los Angeles.

Gardena’s basketball team traveled to and from the game in a school bus, which arrived back at Gardena at approximately 10:30 p.m., Tange said.

Gardena Police Detective Mike Bartlebaugh said he was waiting to check the game’s official score book, which was kept by Manual Arts, the host school. He also said he would try to obtain a video of the game.

“We want to make sure we have verification that he played that night,” Bartlebaugh said. “If he did, then obviously he couldn’t have done the robbery.”

Until his release, Boykins had been held in lieu of $30,000 bail. The 19-year-old senior, an All-City football player as well as a basketball standout, and three other men were arrested Friday on suspicion of committing eight armed robberies in which cash, jewelry and pro sports team jackets were taken from pedestrians. But police have not filed charges against Boykins in any of those crimes and have released two of the other men arrested.

Instead, charges were filed against Boykins Monday after the woman whose purse was stolen identified him from a photograph that accompanied a local newspaper story Saturday on his arrest.

Boykins could not be reached for comment.