​Teenage Volunteer Cops Arrested For Stealing Police Cars In Los Angeles

A group of Los Angeles teenagers have been arrested after stealing police cars and pretending to patrol the city.

The kids stole three vehicles and later crashed them after chases with the real police. The youths, aged 15, 16 and 17, were taking part in a scheme organized by the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) to give local kids a taste of life with the police.

Chief Charlie Beck told a media conference that the kids had 'gamed the system' by using the name of a police sergeant who was on vacation to obtain police stun guns, communication devices and vehicles. They then drove the cars straight out of the police station.

The kids were apprehended when they crashed two of the cars while being chased by the Los Angeles cops. The third vehicle was later discovered after one of the thieves disclosed its location on their arrest.

LAPD Headquarters

Credit: PA Images; LAPD Headquarters

The LAPD are still investigating whether the teens impersonated police officers while in possession of the cop cars. The police are to date unaware of when the cars were stolen, with Chief Charlie Beck stating that it might be possible that they were taken as long ago as 8^th May.

They had been invited into the station house as part of an LAPD scheme to engage with local youth by allowing them to volunteer with the police. The kids were supposed to be learning about the criminal justice system when they absconded with the vehicles.

The cops first became aware that the cars were missing when an officer conducting a routine check of inventory found that they were absent. After studying security videos, they discovered one of the cars in the possession of a young woman at a gas pump.

Los Angeles

Credit: Creative Commons; Los Angeles

A patrol officer spotted two of the missing police cars on Wednesday night in South Los Angeles and alerted colleagues. He attempted to engage the teens driving the stolen cruisers but they refused to pull over and a pursuit ensued, resulting in both vehicles crashing. One of the officers also crashed his car, although he is not thought to be hurt.

According to police, a woman suffered a minor injury in one of the crashes that followed the chase. Josh Rubenstein, a spokesman for the LAPD, said that the woman was 'an innocent bystander in a separate vehicle'.

The teens have been arrested and accused of vehicle theft among other charges. Chief Beck announced that one of the teens had been wearing a police-issue bullet proof vest when arrested. There is no inference that any serving police officers were in any way involved with the crimes.

Chief Beck stated that the thefts will spark a review of the volunteering scheme and the procedures by which it was possible for the youths to get their hands on police cars and equipment.

"We are going to take this apart top to bottom," Beck told assembled media. "We're going to see what we can do better and we're going to do it."

Source: AP

Topics: Los Angeles

Stewart Perrie

Stewart Perrie is a Trending Journalist at LADbible. His first job was as a newsreader and journalist at the award winning Sydney radio station, Macquarie Radio. He was solely responsible for the content broadcast on multiple stations across Australia when the MH17, Germanwings and AirAsia disasters unfolded. Stewart has covered the conflict in Syria for LADbible, interviewing a doctor on the front line, and has contributed to the hugely successful UOKM8 campaign.

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