13-Year-Old Boy Leads Police On Car Chase In Cape Coral

 

CAPE CORAL, Florida - A 13-year-old boy found himself in police custody involving a stolen vehicle police chase through the streets of Cape Coral on Saturday.

The events unfolded on Saturday morning when officers from the Cape Coral Police Department responded to a call in the 1300 block of Everest Parkway at approximately 9:23 AM after the Lee County Sheriff’s Office had asked Cape Coral Police to locate a missing juvenile, who was suspected of stealing a vehicle.

Upon arrival, officers learned from a family member that the boy had absconded in a white Mercedes SUV. 

Officers then started a search of the neighborhood. As they returned to the family residence, they spotted the stolen vehicle approaching. 

An officer activated emergency lights and sirens and followed the Mercedes, which began to increase in speed while nearing pedestrians walking along Everest Parkway. 

Officers followed the Mercedes west to the intersection of Shelby Parkway and Del Prado Boulevard South. 

The 13-year-old then drove through the median to enter the Fifth Third Bank parking lot on Del Prado Boulevard South, striking a curb and taking out shrubbery. 

He continued north into the parking lot of Walgreens on Del Prado Boulevard South, striking another curb and causing the front passenger tire to go flat. The juvenile continued to flee as officers followed him.

The Cape Coral Police Department then got a call from a resident on SE 33rd Street saying that a white Mercedes SUV crashed into her neighbor’s mailbox and two juveniles fled on foot. Officers found the vehicle and started searching for the juveniles.

One officer saw movement in a nearby bush and gave verbal commands for them to come out. The boy and the other juvenile were detained. Police say that the Mercedes belonged to the other juvenile’s mother.

The 13-year-old driver was taken into custody and transported to the Lee County Juvenile Assessment Center. He faces a litany of charges, including Aggravated Fleeing and Eluding, Grand Theft Auto, Resisting Officers Without Violence, Reckless Driving Damage to Property, Driving Without a License, and Hit and Run.