Police Don't Believe Youth-Related Burglaries To Be A Trend

Police do not believe that a recent string of burglaries throughout SW Atlanta allegedly involving juveniles - some as young as eight - are a trend, but just out of the ordinary.

Police are investigating three recent crimes involving young offenders. "While we often deal with juvenile crime, it is rare for someone as young as eight years old to be involved in criminal activity," said APD Public Affairs Manager Carlos Campos in a statement to the media. "Our officers typically begin to encounter juveniles between the ages of 13 and 16.

"To see juveniles this young involved in criminal activity is certainly alarming," he said. "But we do not consider this a growing trend at this time; these appear to be out of the ordinary. We will continue to work closely with our School Detectives Unit as school starts soon, to ensure school-aged children are where they are supposed to be during the day. Further, we will continue to enforce curfew laws to ensure juveniles are accounted for late at night.”

The recently sent out an alert to residents, businesses and media regarding a series of burglaries throughout the area in which juveniles were allegedly involved.

Police are investigating three incidents:

• A June 19 burglary on Starmist Drive. The victim told police he returned home and found his front door damaged and open and an two males, eight and 10, attempting to take a television. Police located the suspects, who told police they had not broken into the home but found it open and were taking things from inside. Three televisions, a bed, a dresser, a coffee table and several bags of clothing had been stolen, and the suspects agreed to return the stolen property. While officers were investigating, the suspect identified three other males - ages 13, 15 and 16 - who were involved in the initial break in. Officers determined that all suspects had been involved and all have been charged with burglary.
• A July 26 incident on Abbey Drive, in which a laptop and Wii game system had been stolen. Several days later the victim alerted police  he had located his Wii game system in an East Point. Investigators determined that the game system serial number matched the stolen game's serial number. Receipts indicated the store had purchased the game from the suspect for $31.20 the day after the burglary. Investigators located the suspect - age 12 - who sold the game to the store. Police discovered that he was present during the burglary and received the game system as compensation for his involvement in the incident. The suspect has been charged with burglary.
• A July 30 incident on Hartwell Road. The victim told police he had been inside his house when he noticed a eight-year-old male looking through his window. The victim went outside and noticed a second male, about 14, inside his vehicle. Both ran when the victim exited his home. The victim told police his vehicle had been unlocked and that the steering column was now damaged. The suspects were not located and no arrests have been made.