Crime & Safety

Man Arrested on Suspicion of Child Annoyance, Stalking

The man allegedly followed juvenile girls as they walked home from Mira Costa High School near the Redondo Beach border.

A Manhattan Beach man was arrested on suspicion of child annoyance and stalking, said police, who are looking for additional potential victims.

Jonathan Peter Shereston, 28, allegedly followed two Mira Costa High School students on Tuesday as they walked home from school. The first incident involved a 16-year-old girl who noticed a car that had been following her pull over in the 1400 block of 19th Street around 3:30 p.m. The man reportedly continued to watch her as she walked. The teenager crossed the street and hid at a neighbor's house, from which police were called, said Officer Stephanie Martin of the Manhattan Beach Police Department. 

Mira Costa is located on Artesia Boulevard near the Redondo Beach border.

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Responding police officers checked the area but did not locate what was described as an older-model yellow Mercedes sedan.

About an hour later, at 4:30 p.m., police received another call with similar circumstances in the 100 block of S. Rowell Ave., said Martin. A 14-year-old girl who was walking home from high school reported a man was following her. The vehicle description matched the one provided in the earlier incident.

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The 14-year-old girl, who was frightened, hid in the backyard of a nearby residence until the driver left the area, said Martin.

Shereston was stopped in his car in the 1900 block of Manhattan Beach Boulevard when a Manhattan Beach police officer who was monitoring traffic on the street observed a vehicle and driver matching the descriptions provided by the victims. 

Based on an investigation, Shereston was arrested on charges of child annoyance (647.6 PC) and stalking (646.9 PC) and booked into Manhattan Beach Police Department’s jail. He was released on citation to South Bay Court for an appearance on March 10, said Martin.

Anyone with additional information regarding these incidents, similar ones of Shereston should call Detective Traci Navarrette at 310-802-5125. The vehicle allegedly used in the incidents is described as a 1983 beige Mercedes Benz 300, license plate number 1G77296. 


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