Investigators have identified the suspect in a violent home invasion robbery that injured a former San Diego City Councilmember. The man was also the target of a police standoff that slowed traffic on a major San Diego area highway late Tuesday.
Harvey Henry Duson, 45, is wanted by San Diego police officers in connection with the Jan. 11 robbery and beating of Harry Mathis. He was recently released from 16 years in prison.
Mathis, 78, was attacked after driving into the garage of his University City home. The former city leader is authorized to carry a gun and fired two rounds at the suspect.
The bullets missed the attacker who, in response, pistol-whipped Mathias in the head.
Mathis' 77-year-old wife Mary was inside the home and had been forced to open a safe by the suspect.
Police believe three men were involved in the robbery.
One suspect set fire to the cars parked in the Mathis' garage as the group left the property police said.
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Mathis was hospitalized with head injuries.
On Tuesday, officers approached a car parked along the shoulder of eastbound Interstate 8 with its hazard lights flashing believing Duson was inside the vehicle.
After two hours, and a traffic delay for commuters, officers determined Duson was not inside the car.
Mathis is the current chair of the Metropolitan Transit System Board. In 1993, Mathis was elected to District 1 which included La Jolla, University City, Rancho Penasquitos, Carmel Valley and Del Mar Heights.
He did not recognize Duson. "I have no idea who he is, where he's been, he's a complete stranger to me,"Mathis told NBC San Diego.
Court records show Duson has a criminal history that includes at least five convictions in the early 1990s. Duson was shot by a sheriff's deputy in 1993 after police say he threatened restaurant employees. He was charged with attempted murder and armed robbery.
Anyone with information concerning this home invasion, or any related cases, can contact the San Diego Police Department’s Robbery Unit at 619-531-2299 or San Diego County Crime Stoppers at 888-580-8477.
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