Case of mistaken identity lands Tennessee paramedic in Wayne County Jail

WAYNE COUNTY, Mich. – A couple visiting from Tennessee had a nightmare of a vacation after one of them was mistaken for a wanted man out of Indiana.

Toni Bean and Jeff Conn were visiting Detroit for a relative's graduation. They went to Canada to sightsee. That's when Conn was arrested and tossed in the Wayne County Jail because he shares a name with a man who is wanted for alleged crimes in Indiana.

Conn is originally from southwest Detroit and is a paramedic living in Tennessee. While Conn was in jail, Bean Googled his name and found a man facing a burglary charge out of Fulton County, Indiana.

Bean drove to Indiana and convinced the prosecutor's office that there had been a mistake. She made it back to Wayne County in time to see Conn walk out of jail.

Watch the video above for the full report.


About the Authors:

Local 4 Defender Shawn Ley is an Emmy award-winning journalist who has been with Local 4 News for more than a decade.

Kayla is a Web Producer for ClickOnDetroit. Before she joined the team in 2018 she worked at WILX in Lansing as a digital producer.