GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga. — Two teens are now in custody after allegedly stealing a truck and damaging the Mill Creek High School football field on Tuesday, according to the Gwinnett County Police.
It's also alleged that the teens almost hit a police officer with the truck before crashing it, police said.
According to the authorities, the teens stole a Ram 1500 pickup truck from the driveway of a home on Adams Acre Drive in Lawrenceville. The two teens are accused of entering the truck after finding a set of keys inside.
Police were able to identify the suspects after the truck's owners showed police video surveillance, which officers said showed the two teens going inside and driving off with it.
The two suspects then allegedly used it to damage the Mill Creek High School football field, which is about six miles down the road from where the vehicle was stolen from, police said in a news release.
Officers weren't able to find the suspects until later that day when Flock cameras in the Buford area found the truck. A news release stated that the officers responded behind a Walmart on Sardis Church Road. Police tried to box the truck in with the suspects still inside. After officers gave commands, the two teens allegedly drove the car toward an officer, almost hitting him with the truck.
Authorities then got into a short car chase with the suspects before they crashed into another vehicle on Hamilton Mill Road, police said. When the truck crashed, both the teens got out and started running away.
In body camera video released by the Gwinnett County Police, an officer can be heard giving several commands before taking one of the teens and cuffing them afterward.
The video released to 11Alive also showed police helicopter footage of officers capturing the other teen after they ran into a nearby woodline.
Gwinnett County Police said the two teens were charged with aggravated assault against a law enforcement officer, fleeing or attempting to elude a police officer, reckless driving, hit and run, driving without a license, obstruction, giving a false name to a police officer, theft by taking a motor vehicle and entering auto. One teen is at the Gwinnett County Jail, and the other is at a youth detention center.
Gwinnett County Public Schools sent 11Alive photos of the damage to the football field. View the photos below.
