Arnold Police arrested two 17-year-olds, one from St. Charles and the other from Florissant, after they reportedly tried to steal from unlocked vehicles in subdivisions off Lonedell Road. The two male teenagers also allegedly fled from police in a 2007 Mazda3, but after officers used spike strips, the vehicle was disabled and crashed into a utility pole near the West Outer Road, police reported.
Neither teen was injured in the crash, the report said.
The two teens allegedly were working with two men to steal from unlocked vehicles in the 1600 block of Karley Drive, and those two men had not been located as of Dec. 17, Cpl. Brett Ackermann said.
Officers were called at about 11 p.m. Dec. 10 to the subdivision by a resident who said he was following the car the alleged thieves were using as they went down the street trying to get into unlocked vehicles. The resident provided police with updates on the car’s location in the subdivision as officers headed to the area, according to the report.
The resident eventually chased the Mazda onto Cherokee Court, a street off Bender Lane that ends in a cul-de-sac. The resident said he stopped at the entrance to Cherokee Court, and the Mazda drove out of the street, nearly hitting his vehicle, the report said.
The Mazda left the neighborhood and got onto Lonedell Road, where Arnold Police officers began pursuing the car. As officers chased the Mazda, another officer put a spike strip on the West Outer Road near Key West Drive, according to the report.
When the Mazda ran over the strip, the officer’s hand got caught in the rope used to deploy and retract the spikes. The officer’s hand was cut by the rope, and he had to take a few days off before returning to duty because of the injury, Ackermann said.
After going over the spike strip, the Mazda ran off the road, hit a metal road sign and crashed into a utility pole. The teens tried to run away from the officers, but they were arrested shortly after the crash, Arnold Police reported.
The car was registered to one of the St. Charles teen’s parents. Officers found two guns in the damaged Mazda, and the Florissant teen also had a gun with him, the report said.
The teens were turned over to juvenile authorities, and Arnold Police will seek tampering and gun charges against both teens, Ackermann said.
He also said Arnold Police will seek charges against the St. Charles teen through the juvenile court system for second-degree assault and third-degree assault, leaving the scene of an accident, resisting arrest, careless and imprudent driving, driving without proof of insurance, possession of marijuana, armed criminal action, failure to yield and property damage.