Teens! They are amazing and also terrifying. These days some of them are getting addicted to flavored e-cigarettes; others are out there trying to kick climate change’s ass. Yet others still are getting into typical teen mischief, and if this Michigan crime is any indication, modern teens are more cunning than ever.
Local news outlets in Flint report that two teens, aged 14 and 15, have been charged in juvenile court with 11 counts apiece in connection with the theft of eight brand new General Motors trucks from an overflow parking lot. Other teen suspects remain at large.
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Eight Chevrolet Silverado HD and GMC Sierra HD trucks in total were stolen; they’re valued around $80,000 apiece, making this a $640,000 crime spree, according to police. (Trucks are so expensive now.)
MLive and ABC12 report the heist began around 6 a.m. Sunday when the trucks were driven through a security fence at an overflow lot; the unnamed teens (which is typical for juvenile charges) returned three times to take more trucks the same way. Police say they are not sure how they got the keys.
But the crime-teens were thwarted by GM’s OnStar system, which alerted dispatchers in the area to a possible theft, the outlets report. Passersby also called 911 to report possible thefts.
At least one of the trucks was used in an attempted ATM theft from a nearby bank as well, MLive reports:
A call was received a short time later from central dispatch by OnStar about an unoccupied 2020 Chevrolet Silverado found at Sovita Credit Union, 4411 Calkins Road, in Flint Township that had appeared to have rammed into an ATM in an attempt to get at the money, Michigan State Police Lt. Dave Kaiser previously said.
A second OnStar call came into central dispatch reporting a signal from one of the stolen vehicles was spotted in a wooded area near Stalker School on Walton Avenue off Flushing Road in Flint Township.
Six of the stolen trucks were located by police in the woods still running. Several suspects were also spotted in the vicinity, Kaiser said.
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So, yes: a few teenagers, at least some of whom are not even into their driving years yet, stole eight trucks and then attempted to use at least one to try and snatch an ATM. I’m seriously impressed.
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As police converged on the area, several of the stolen trucks were found in a wooded area behind Stalker Elementary School near Flushing Road and Mitson Boulevard. The suspects fled on foot and on bicycles, according to local news reports; two of them, the 14-year-old and the 15-year-old, were arrested. Others got away, but police say they anticipate more charges soon.
The TV station reports the two were charged with, among other things, “malicious destruction of property over $20,000, safe breaking and nine counts of unlawfully driving away an automobile.” Safe breaking! Now there’s a crime.
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Honestly, I want to be friends with these teens. Stealing is wrong but daring, complex heists are incredibly badass, and I bet these kids are fun to hang out with. I hope they turn their lives around and become respectable citizens, or unstoppable master criminals.
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