Yesterday, a Special Investigations Unit deputy spotted two suspicious vehicles parked next to each other in an apartment complex in the 11000 block of Waller Rd E in the Parkland area. The vehicles, both Kias, were occupied by what appeared to be juveniles. The deputy ran a records check on the license plates and discovered that both vehicles were stolen.
The deputy watched the cars and the occupants as he waited for backup deputies to arrive. He saw a suspect load a black trash bag into a third vehicle, which had previously been unoccupied. The vehicle, a Hyundai, left for a few minutes and then came back. That vehicle was listed as stolen as well.
Patrol deputies were just arriving at the complex when two of the stolen vehicles began driving towards the exit. A deputy deployed stop sticks in front of one of the cars, but the driver swerved to avoid them. That car sped away recklessly and, since vehicle theft is not a pursuable offense, deputies could not chase after it.
The 18-year-old female driver of the second vehicle put the car in reverse and attempted to quickly back away from patrol cars. Then she put the vehicle in park and surrendered.
Deputies went back to the original scene and located the 15-year-old female driver of the third vehicle. She was taken into custody.
The adult suspect was booked into jail for possession of a stolen vehicle. The juvenile was released to a guardian and charges were forwarded to the prosecutor’s office for review.
A deputy found a kitten in one of the vehicles. Since it belonged to one of the occupants (not an arrestee), the deputy had to return it to her.