COLUMBUS, Ohio — A Franklin County judge on Monday ordered four teen carjacking suspects to stay in custody at a juvenile detention center. The teens are accused of stealing a car at gunpoint and leading police on a 17-minute high-speed chase.
The teens were arrested Sunday evening after the driver ran a red light, spun out and crashed into a parked car on East Broad Street near the Ohio Statehouse.
The suspects include two 14-year-olds and two 15-year-olds. Each of them are charged with aggravated robbery, robbery and receiving stolen property.
Police said the car was stolen from East Main Street and Lilley Avenue, about three miles from the Statehouse around 6:30 p.m.
According to prosecutors, the victim told police six people confronted him with guns and demanded his phone, wallet and keys.
Columbus resident Jessi Hanks, who visits the corner store at that intersection regularly, said he is worried teens are getting involved in violence because they feel like there are no other options.
“They have nowhere to go, nothing to do,” Hanks said.
The 14-year-olds had no criminal history. The 15-year-olds have been arrested before.
“I’m glad they got them all,” said Eric Barlow, who also lives nearby. “The kids need to spend more time with their parents instead of out here in the streets doing what they are doing.”
Family members of three of the teens came to court for the suspects’ preliminary hearing, asking the judge to send them home.
The mother of one of the 14-year-olds told the judge her son had been doing better at home and school until he did not come home Sunday night.
The other 14-year-old had just moved to town to help his grandmother, who told the court he had been acting out recently due to some bad influences.
“I’m in disbelief right now,” she told the judge.
The father of the 15-year-old was hoping his son could be released with GPS monitoring. He is a high school student and works for his father.
The attorney for the fourth suspect said he could not get in touch with any family members, so sending him home was not an option.
The judge ordered the four boys to be in custody until their next court dates in late September and early October.