A group of juveniles were charged with a rash of crimes, ranging from burglaries to car thefts around Yazoo City.
Three juvenile males, all 15 years old, remained at the local juvenile detention center as of press time. The Yazoo Herald does not identify juveniles charged with crimes.
Chief Jay Winstead, with the Yazoo City Police Department, said he is extremely proud of Sgt. Artis Harris and Cpt. William Nevels for their thorough investigation of the recent crime spree within the community.
“They did an excellent job of following through with their investigation and leads in this case,” Winstead said. “Actually, they had already identified the suspects and were discussing a strategy to pick them up when the group of suspects committed their final crime. It all pieced together.”
The crime spree began on Nov. 9 when the suspects burglarized American Auto on Jerry Clower Blvd.
“One of the suspects broke in through a building window and took a number of vehicle keys from inside,” Nevels said. “Two vehicles were stolen from the business. One of those vehicles was relocated not far from the business. The other vehicle was found later, flipped upside down, in Jackson.”
Three days later, the suspects burglarized Speedy Cash, located right next door to American Auto. A cellular phone was reported missing from that business.
Nevels said American Auto was burglarized again that day, with a small amount of money reported missing.
“A suspect then attempted to break into Sonic,” Nevels said. “We discovered the security cameras near the drive-in were damaged. He attempted to break in through the drive-in window but was unable to do so.”
Cotton Auto on Fifteenth Street was also burglarized, and keys to a truck were stolen from inside the building. The truck was later found on Maynie Avenue.
At this point, Nevels and Harris had pieced the spree together and had identified the three juvenile suspects. The two officers were preparing to arrest the group when the final crime took place.
“A female was getting gas at the Citgo gas station on Highway 3,” Nevels said. “When she went inside to pay for her gas, all three suspects stole her vehicle and headed to Jackson.”
A GPS tracking system located the stolen vehicle in Jackson, and the Yazoo City Police Department coordinated with the Jackson Police Department for assistance. JPD arrested the suspects, and YCPD brought them back to Yazoo City to be charged with a wide-range of crimes.
All vehicles reported stolen during the spree have been recovered.
One juvenile suspect has a lengthy criminal record. His complete charges include four counts of commercial burglary, attempted commercial burglary, and three counts of grand larceny.
The second and third juveniles were both charged with commercial burglary and two counts of grand larceny.
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