California teens used stolen cars as battering rams in Bay Area burglaries, police say

A group of teenage boys are in custody after police say they stole cars and drove them into storefronts around the Bay Area in a series of burglaries starting on Christmas Eve.

The boys range in age from 14 to 16 and burglarized multiple businesses over three months, the San Jose Police Department announced in a news release Monday.

The mother of one boy was also arrested for taking part in orchestrating the burglaries, according to Santa Clara Dist. Atty. Jeff Rosen.

In surveillance footage from a burglary in March, the teens attached a chain to the back of a car and ripped away the front door to a liquor store. They ransacked the store and stuffed the stolen goods in the car trunk. The clanking of glass bottles can be heard in the security footage.

“The sound of the broken glass and car pulling away the frame of the door is one of the most disturbing part of the crime that stays with you,” Rosen told The Times.

The first incident was reported on Christmas Eve.

In that incident, police said four suspects drove a vehicle into a business off Almaden Road near a highway and ransacked it. The suspects were gone by the time police arrived and in the weeks that followed, dozens of similar incidents with vehicles being driven into buildings were reported.

But officials say law enforcement finally caught up to the crew on March 25 through a series of run-ins across San Jose. It started when they allegedly stole two vehicles from a home around 3 a.m., then tried to carjack someone nearby about 15 minutes later. Police said the suspects used a gun to chase off a vehicle owner who confronted them when they broke into his car and it set off the alarm, allowing all of them to escape.

But roughly 30 minutes later, police said they found suspects in two of the vehicles in downtown San Jose after getting a hit on a license plate reader.

When officers tried to pull the vehicles over, they refused to stop and got away — but only temporarily. One of the vehicles was eventually found disabled on a highway onramp and after a foot chase, one suspect was captured. A second suspect in that car who pointed a gun at an officer got away, police said.

Two more crew members were captured after 4 a.m. after a police pursuit, officials said. One suspect used their car to ram a police cruiser during their attempted escape.

At some point, San Jose Police investigators learned that police in Santa Clara were also investigating similar crimes in their jurisdiction, and the three remaining crew members were identified and warrants issued for their arrest.

On June 17, they were taken into custody at homes in Milpitas and San Jose. Two women related to the teens who were accused of discarding evidence, receiving stolen property, contributing to a minor and resisting arrest were also arrested, according to police.

During a search of the homes, investigators found a loaded magazine for a firearm, ski masks, key fobs for vehicles, a tool used to access vehicle diagnostic information, several replica firearms, ammunition and steel chains.

The suspects appeared well organized, according to Rosen, and were being directed by a mother of one of the teens. Prosecutors expect more adults and juveniles will be arrested in connection to the ongoing investigation. All the suspects will face similar charges, including burglary, carjacking, assault and other crimes.