CHARLOTTE, NC (WBTV) - Six teenagers are facing felony charges in a string of Charlotte-area vehicle break-ins. Two of the suspects admitted to being involved in two Charlotte gun shop break-ins this week as well. Hyatt Gun Shop is one of the places hit. The suspects were unsuccessful in stealing any firearms."We were just very happy that they got caught, the people responsible," Hyatt Gun Shop Manager Mitchell Hyatt said. "So they don't try this somewhere else."Charlotte-Mecklenburg police say a vehicle was broken into in a neighborhood near David Jennings Avenue and Gatesmill Avenue. The following morning, residents called 911 to report suspicious people in the area. Police say that call helped officers crack the case."We are much more effective when the public works with us and helps us identify criminal activity that's going on, because we get there so much faster," CMPD Captain Brian Foley said.Officers found a vehicle broken into with items missing on Gatesmill Avenue. Four suspects were found fleeing nearby. They were later identified as 16-year-old Demarcus Xavier Davis, 19-year-old Rasheed Emanuel Malik Williams, a 15-year-old and a 14-year-old.Officers also found two suspect vehicles that fled from police. The driver of a burgundy vehicle, later identified as 17-year-old Jamil Davis, wrecked one of the vehicles and fled nearby. Police identified a 15-year-old juvenile as the person who stole the second vehicle.Police told WBTV arresting teenagers for significant crimes is becoming a trend in the area. They say the department has programs to help teenagers stay on the right road."The effort being to redirect and reestablish good quality choices made by teens," Captain Foley said. "Unfortunately, we have teens who are beyond our reach of that program."Detectives brought in and interviewed the six suspects. Several of them confessed to their involvement in the break-ins, including breaking into two gun shops. One of the attempted break-ins happened at Hyatt Gun Shop on Wilkinson Boulevard early Wednesday morning. The other happened at the Gun Outlet on N. Tryon Street. Below are the locations of the crimes the suspects are accused of being involved in:
Williams, Davis and the juveniles are charged with felonious breaking or entering, felonious larceny after breaking or entering, felonious possession of stolen goods, and felony conspiracy to commit breaking or entering.Davis is charged with felonious larceny of a vehicle and felonious possession of a stolen vehicle. The 15-year-old juvenile accused of stealing the white vehicle is charged with felonious auto larceny and felonious possession of stolen goods.Officers obtained secure custody orders for the three juveniles. The others went to the Mecklenburg County Sheriff's Office. Police say the investigation is ongoing and more charges are possible. Word is spreading among gun store owners to be on guard."Make sure you got your stuff locked up," said Matthew King. "Make sure your security measures are tight."King owns The Arms Room in Charlotte. He said he found out up close and personal how would-be thieves are going to great lengths to break-in to gun stores."Guys used a torch set to try to burn the door open with an acetylene torch," he said.King says he came to work last week and noticed the store's door was charred black. The lock was burned out. He checked his surveillance video and saw two masked men trying to get in his store."I couldn't believe what I was seeing," he said. "The fact that these guys were riding around with a full size torch set in the trunk of their car."The thieves didn't get in. King said that even if they did, all of his guns are locked up at night. He's hoping police catch the men who targeted his store."It's just an unsettling feeling knowing that guys are out trying to get these guns," he said. "I mean if they obtain them illegally there's no telling what kind of activities they're going to use them for."Anyone with additional information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 704-334-1600.