INDIANAPOLIS — A teenage trio carjacked two men at gunpoint in less than two hours, according to police reports obtained by FOX 59/CBS 4.
The apparent crime spree began on the city’s near west side just after 11 p.m. Friday when a man was carjacked outside his home near Michigan Street and Belmont Avenue. The car was later found ditched a few miles away along Burdsal Parkway.
Police believes those same suspects then made their way to the Shell gas station at 30th and Illinois Streets where surveillance video shows them lying in wait for their next victim.
Just before 12:30 a.m. Saturday, the trio swarmed the unsuspecting victim as he walked out of the gas station and back to his car that’s sitting at a gas pump.
Surveillance video, obtained exclusively by FOX 59/CBS 4, shows the attackers steal everything they can from the man before hopping in his car and taking off.
Cops would eventually catch up to them and began pursuing the suspects along 38th street until they crashed outside a neighborhood just east of Franklin Road. The three suspects made a run for it and police eventually arrested one of them who they identified as a 14-year-old boy.
The other two carjackers got away.
“That is not acceptable and it’s not tolerated,” IMPD Officer Tommy Thompson said. “We will work with the Marion County Prosecutor’s Office and the juvenile justice system to ensure that these individuals are found and put to justice for our victim.”
Detectives are now searching for the two suspects that got away and are hopeful that someone will recognize them and turn them in.
Juveniles carjacking people or stealing vehicles and then leading police on high-speed pursuits has unfortunately become somewhat of a trend IMPD has seen too often this year. Their message, as always, is that parents and the community needs to step up.
“We see these firearms in juvenile hands and we have to be doing more to ensure that we know where our juveniles are. [Where] our children are at,” Thompson said. “Where are the authority figures in these lives?”
The 14-year-old boy faces several charges including armed robbery and auto theft.
As for the remaining two suspects, detectives are asking anyone who recognizes them or who knows anything about these incidents to call CrimeStoppers at 317-262-TIPS. You can remain anonymous and may be entitled to a cash reward.
You can also contact Detective Todd Lappin directly at [email protected].
