A dangerous pursuit in Pierce County led to the arrest of a 12-year-old, 14-year-old, 16-year-old, and 21-year-old, all caught on police body camera.
“Mom, I love you, the police got me,” police body camera captured the 21-year-old driver saying when he was taken into custody.
The pursuit happened October 6. The Pierce County Sheriff’s Office shared the video Saturday, stating it began when a sergeant spotted a stolen car.
“This sergeant saw the vehicle and the driver was wearing one of those full ski masks and knew that he needed to attempt a traffic stop on that vehicle,” Pierce County Sheriff’s Office Public Information Officer Carly Cappetto said.
At one point, the sergeant tried a pit maneuver, but the road was too narrow, and he slid into a ditch. Puyallup Police kept chasing the car until the stolen vehicle also got stuck in a ditch.
The 21-year-old driver tried to run while on the phone with his mom, Cappetto said. Puyallup Police and the Pierce County Sheriff’s Office later caught the driver and the 12-year-old girl, 14-year-old boy, and 16-year-old girl who were inside the car.
“A huge concern is that there were open alcoholic containers throughout that whole vehicle, in addition to drug paraphernalia, and it was very obvious that these juveniles were supplied with alcohol and drugs,” Cappetto said.
No one was hurt in this pursuit, but it could have ended differently. “The part that breaks my heart is that if they hadn’t been caught, they probably wouldn’t be alive. Their reckless behaviors were either going to kill somebody else or kill themselves, and it’s just very scary for any parent that has teenagers who understand the importance of knowing where your kids are at and who they are hanging out with at all times,” Cappetto said.
The 21-year-old driver was booked for possession of stolen property, DUI, eluding, reckless endangerment, and bribery for offering an officer money to let him go, according to the Pierce County Sheriff’s Office. The three minors were booked into Remann Hall Juvenile Detention Center.
The incident highlights ongoing concerns about juvenile involvement in vehicle theft and the dangers posed when adult drivers involve minors in criminal activity while providing them with alcohol and drugs.
