INDIANAPOLIS — Three teen suspects were taken into custody early Saturday morning following a string of robberies on Indy’s east side, according to the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department.
The department reported the incidents on social media Thursday.
An IMPD officer responded to the first robbery incident around 2 a.m. Saturday in the 3000 block of East 10th Street.
The store employee told police that the three juvenile males stole the merchandise earlier that night.
Sometime later, the kids returned, one of them entering and pointing a gun at the clerk. The suspect reportedly demanded “chips and vape,” but was scared off by the employee.
While the officers spoke with the first employee, a call came in reporting three juveniles breaking into a different business less than a half mile away. The suspects were not on the scene when IMPD arrived, but the business had been damaged.
Then, 15 minutes after the second robbery, a third call came in reporting the juveniles trying to break into vehicles. The suspects ran when police arrived, but were taken into custody in a nearby garage – thanks to additional help from a drone, an IMPD K-9, an alert control operator, and a concerned neighbor.
Police found a backpack full of stolen goods and the black Glock handgun, which later turned out to be an airsoft gun.
IMPD Chief Tanya Terry, in a news release, questioned where the adults responsible for the teens were while all this happened.
“We need our young people supervised, supported, and on the right path, not out in the middle of the night committing crimes with a realistic-looking replica handgun. We have to wonder where the adults responsible for these teens were during all of this.
“These incidents could have ended very differently, and I’m grateful for the work of our officers and detectives, and for the community members who helped with the safe apprehension of these kids.”
