COLUMBUS, Ohio — Five stolen vehicles were recovered in the same location in about in hour on the west side of Columbus by the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office, and deputies say all the suspects are juveniles.
A sheriff's deputy tried to stop a stolen vehicle around 4 a.m. on Wednesday.
“It makes me sad this continues and it makes me feel like the path we are following may not be the path that works for us and we need to find a different route to curb this,” said David Gray, who organized a meeting between Franklin County Juvenile Court judges, parents of the "Kia Boys" and the community.
CrimeTracker 10 has been reporting on the Kia Boys since the beginning of the year. The group targets Hyundais and Kias because they are easier to steal.
The sheriff's office says the driver was so erratic, they stopped pursuing the car.
“It's very dangerous because we have to account for our driving and to do what we can to attempt to stop that vehicle. When they flee like that, we don't know what they are going to do. It is a very dangerous thing for the motoring public,” said Chief Deputy Jim Gilbert.
As deputies were investigating the stolen car, they found two more stolen cars in the same area.
A 13-year-old then walked up to deputies to ask for a ride and admitted to being involved.
The sheriff's office says they recovered a total of five stolen vehicles in the area off Georgesville Road and Sullivant Avenue.
“This is occurring on a routine basis across all shifts, across all 28 of our agencies. No agency, no community is immune to what is going on with this crisis involving stolen vehicles and juveniles,” Gilbert said.
Gilbert isn't releasing the child's name, but says his 12-year-old relative was arrested two weeks ago for stealing a car in the same area and crashing it into a pond.
“It's very alarming because they are young juveniles and trying to get them to understand that this is not a game, it's not something to be posting on social media. This is very dangerous,” he said.
Gray hopes this will send yet another message for a new solution.
“I'm hoping the juvenile judges we met with take a long look at the course they are following and see if it is actually working,” Gray said.