Santa Clarita / Antelope Valley : 2 Men Not Charged in Jewelry Shop Robbery : Crime: One apparently was at a Valencia Town Center eatery during the nearby holdup. The other is held in connection with another case.

Two men taken into custody minutes after the armed robbery of a Valencia Town Center jewelry store haven’t been charged in the incident thanks to a half-eaten meal, a receipt and a videotape.

Patrick Lyn Hawkins, 26, of Inglewood and Damon Lamont Jones, 24, of Los Angeles weren’t among the men who entered the Victoria Jewelers shop Tuesday night, smashed display cases and fled with an estimated $300,000 in jewels, according to investigators with the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office.

“It looks like they weren’t involved in the robbery,” said Deputy Dist. Atty. Brad Stone.

The two men exited the shopping center mall as sheriff’s deputies converged on the area in response to multiple 911 calls. They were taken into custody and held in lieu of $30,000 bail based upon the initial physical descriptions given by witnesses.

Stone said one suspect had a receipt from the shopping center food court for a meal purchased six minutes before the robbery and the half-eaten food still with him. Later review of a security videotape of the robbery showed Hawkins and Jones were wearing different clothing than the men who committed the crime.

“We are making a further investigation to verify the alibi and the documentation of it,” Stone said. “The sheriffs are currently having the videos enlarged to make sure there wasn’t a change of clothes or disguise.”

Hawkins has been released, but Jones remains in custody in lieu of $25,000 bail on a felony charge of receiving stolen property. A cellular phone reported stolen in October was discovered in his automobile during a sheriff’s search.

Four men entered the jewelry store during the robbery, with one shooting a handgun between the legs of the store manager to intimidate him, Stone said.

There were no injuries in the incident and no one was found during the nine-hour search of the 750,000-square-foot building that followed. This is the mall’s first major crime since its September, 1992, opening.

Investigators have also managed to link a van, reported stolen from San Fernando on Nov. 11 and discovered along Tupelo Ridge Drive Tuesday night, with the robbery, said Deputy Gabe Ramirez of the Sheriff’s Information Bureau.

The 1988 Plymouth Voyager minivan was found with the engine running and no keys inside.

“There was property in the van believed to be taken from Victoria Jewelers,” Ramirez said.