A 17-year-old Dittmer woman and a 21-year-old Imperial man recently were arrested after off-duty Arnold Police officers spotted their vehicle, which was wanted in connection with burglaries in Jefferson and St. Louis counties. The two were arrested at about 4:40 p.m. July 27, Detective Lt. James Jones said.
The officers were in plain clothes and were at a gas station next to the Ace Hardware store, 1520 Jeffco Blvd., in Arnold, where they saw the suspects’ car. It previously was white but had been spray-painted pink, and apparently, the two had been using a chemical to take off the pink paint because they knew the car was listed as wanted and after running out of the chemical, went to the hardware store to buy more, Jones said.
When officers approached the car, the man was inside the store and the woman was sitting in the passenger seat. But, she jumped in the driver’s seat and “drove off at a high rate of speed,” fleeing from the officers.
The woman had no driver’s license, and a short time after taking off and after violating several traffic laws, she crashed the vehicle on Church Road. The accident was minor and no one was hurt, Jones said.
Arnold Police took the woman into custody and “found a large amount of stolen property” in the car, Jones said.
When officers found the man inside the store, he allegedly was in possession of methamphetamine, the report sad.
The woman and man were booked and held so officers from the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office and the St. Louis County Police Department could interview them about burglaries in their areas, according to the report.
Arnold Police will seek charges against the woman for resisting arrest, failure to yield to an emergency vehicle, driving with no license and traffic violations. Charges will be sought against the man for possession of meth and stolen property. Those charges will be sought through the Jefferson County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, Jones said.