Police in Albuquerque, New Mexico, arrested an 11-year-old kid on charges that he embarked on a violent monthlong crime spree that included car burglaries and gunshots.
Albuquerque Police Chief Harold Medina said in a social media post that it was “disappointing to see an 11-year-old arrested” for crimes ranging “from burglary to shooting a firearm.”
“But this armed individual’s behavior was escalating and he was a danger to the community,” he wrote in the post.
According to a police statement released on Friday, the boy was arrested late Thursday.
Medina added in the statement that he was “grateful that we took this young suspect into custody without our officers having to use force.”
“Despite his age, this suspect is considered very dangerous because of his use of a firearm and his escalating violence,” stated the police chief.
It wasn’t immediately known whether the youngster had a lawyer.
The boy has been charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, conspiracy, shooting at or from a motor vehicle, shooting into an occupied dwelling, aggravated battery, unlawful possession of a weapon by a minor, nonresidential burglary, criminal damage to property worth more than $1,000, and conspiracy to commit a fourth-degree felony.
Police also revealed a timeline of the offenses the 11-year-old is accused of committing. According to police, on May 5, an automobile was taken in the northeast area of the city and recovered one hour later. On May 12, a woman stated that four youngsters were “throwing rocks at the residence and attempting to break the windows of the home,” and she was wounded in the leg, according to the department’s statement.
On the same day, a 12-year-old called police to report a group of youngsters throwing rocks at her house, authorities said. The caller recognized some of the youngsters in the group and identified them as the “Kia Boys,” who were known to frequent the neighborhood, according to authorities.
Albuquerque police said they responded to a commercial burglary in which a person was seen driving in reverse and colliding with the front security door of a business.
The theft and damages totaled more than $15,000, and the vehicle was ultimately recognized as stolen, according to nbcnews.
On May 29, a man called 911 and said that he had been shot at by four youths in a blue Kia after seeing the unknown car outside his home. He urged the lads to leave, but they returned shortly after and shot at him, according to police. A 9 mm casing was found at the caller’s residence.
A few days later, on June 1, police were informed about a shooting, with claims of a man being shot in the hand and a 9 mm handgun found at the site, according to authorities.
“Through information from several witnesses, victim statements, and surveillance video, detectives were able to identify the juvenile and secure an arrest warrant,” the statement from the police added.