Boy arrested after allegedly stealing car from dealership, leading police on chase, crashing

MOUNT PLEASANT -- A 13-year-old boy was arrested early Monday, July 4th after allegedly burglarizing a car dealership in Mount Pleasant, stealing a car and then crashing that vehicle. Officials say they are searching for four other persons in connection with this case.

Mount Pleasant police were on patrol around 2:30 a.m. Monday when they came across multiple vehicles traveling at a high rate of speed. Some of the vehicles had no headlamps on.

Police attempted to stop the vehicles, but the vehicles fled from officers -- leading them on a pursuit.

Due to the high rate of speed and reckless nature of the suspects' driving, officers terminated the pursuit. Police estimate the suspects reached speeds between 85-100 miles per hour before officers chose to stop the chase.

A few minutes later, officers came across one of the vehicles that had crashed into the median on State Highway 20/Washington Avenue west of West Road. Officers observed the crashed vehicle was on fire -- and they extinguished it.

Officers took into custody a 13-year-old boy who had allegedly stolen the vehicle, described by neighbors as a minivan.

"You heard a big bang and then you just heard glass breaking. I first thought somebody was trying to break into the house," Kathy Vogt said.

"Came out, saw all kinds of cops yelling at someone to get on the ground and a car in the ditch," Jennifer Sabin said.

It was later discovered the boy and several other suspects had committed a burglary at the Porcaro Ford dealership in Mount Pleasant. Officials say substantial damage was done to the business. FOX6 News found the service door shattered Monday.

Porcaro Ford dealership in Mount Pleasant

"When I heard on the news this morning that Porcaro had cars stolen from the lot, I was a little concerned that mine was still here," Deanna Johnson said.

Fortunately, Johnson learned Monday her car is fine.

"It`s pretty sad that kids that young are stealing cars nowadays," Johnson said.

Police say the suspects stole the vehicles and were fleeing the scene when officers discovered them. According to police, all three stolen vehicles are property of the dealership.

Two of the vehicles are 2016 and 2017 Ford Escapes that were being prepared for customers. The third vehicle is a Ford transit van that was taken from the lot; that's the vehicle that was involved in the wreck on Highway 20 near West Rd.

The 13-year-old boy was taken to a hospital for treatment of minor injuries. He now faces numerous charges.

Police say he had a warrant out for his arrest in connection to a burglary in Milwaukee County.

Again, four other persons are being sought in this case. Officials also say there is surveillance video of the initial incident. Police say from that video, it appears all five suspects are in their early to late teens.

Monitor FOX6 News and FOX6Now.com for updates on this developing story.