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MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WREG) — A Piperton, Tennessee, police officer is off the job after being arrested for a strong-arm robbery in Cleveland, Mississippi, over the weekend.

Piperton Police Chief Jonathan Roney said Officer Michele Washington, 46, had been relieved of duty pending the outcome of the investigation in Bolivar County.

The Bolivar County Sheriff’s Office said Washington and Tywan Johnson, 36, were accused of assaulting and robbing a man at an Exxon station in the 1500 block of North Bayou early Saturday morning.

Michele Washington and Tywan Johnson. (Courtesy: Bolivar County Sheriff’s Office)

According to the sheriff’s office, the victim was able to flag down a deputy for help after it happened.

Investigators have not said what Washington and Johnson are accused of taking but said they were able to use the victim’s personal items to track down the pair. They said the suspects were stopped in Shelby, Mississippi, by the Shelby Police Department and the Bolivar County Sheriff’s Office.

Washington lives in Horn Lake, Mississippi, but has been with the Piperton Police Department for about three years. Piperton is about 35 miles east of Memphis.

Chief Roney said he could not comment on Williams’s arrest since it is an ongoing investigation.

A $50,000 bond was set for both suspects.

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