SPOKANE VALLEY, Wash. – A 13-year-old suspect was arrested on multiple felony charges after an alleged crime spree that involved stealing a car and a gun and forcing a 9-year-old into the stolen car at gunpoint.
According to the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office, two children, ages 9 and 13, were reported as runaways from a group home on East Sharp Avenue. Due to their ages, Spokane Valley deputies searched the area, including the use of drones, but were initially unsuccessful.
Deputies said that the situation escalated when the teen allegedly stole a handgun from a car in a hotel parking lot on North Sullivan Road and later stole a car from a business on North Thierman Road.
The Sheriff’s Office said that the younger child initially refused to participate in the crimes but was forced into the stolen car at gunpoint by the suspect. The suspect later crashed the vehicle into the median on I-90 near the Geiger/Grove Road area.
Witnesses later found the juveniles on West Thorpe Road and contacted police, deputies said. Spokane County deputies and Airway Heights police officers safely detained both juveniles. Deputies said that they later recovered the handgun, which the suspect had left in the grass before being taken into custody.
The 13-year-old was booked into the Spokane County Juvenile Detention Center. Charges include first-degree kidnapping, second-degree assault and second-degree unlawful possession of a firearm.
Deputies said yjay efforts to contact the owners of the stolen vehicle and firearm are ongoing and additional charges are possible.
