PEORIA, Ill. – Peoria police arrest five juveniles, all charged with several counts of business burglary.
All the juveniles are female ranging in age from 15-to-17. One of them had an active warrant.
The arrests came during a Directed Patrol Detail involving a total of 40-plus law enforcement officers from the Peoria Police Department and Illinois State Police.
Peoria police say officers were called to a business in the 5200 block of War Memorial Drive around 2:17 p.m. Thursday on a report of five people inside the business stealing clothes.
The group left the store before officers arrived, but police learned the make and model of their car and used a License Plate Reader to locate it a short time later in the 2700 block of W Westport.
The five juveniles exited the vehicle and were detained. Officers approached the vehicle and found a number of stolen items in the backseat. Police say the merchandise was stolen from several local retail stores.
The juveniles were taken to the Peoria Police Department for questioning and later arrested and transported to the Peoria County Juvenile Detention Center.
Peoria police say over 60 vehicle stops were conducted during the Directed Patrol Detail, resulting in several citations and numerous warnings. There were four arrests among the vehicle stops and two weapons were seized. Seventeen tickets were issued, one vehicle was impounded and one moving violation was issued.
Major incidents during the detail, in addition to the juvenile arrests, are as follows:
2000 Blk of W. Wiswall: At approximately 3:28 p.m. members of the Peoria Police Department’s Special Investigations Division (SID) observed a wanted male subject in the 2000 block of W. Wiswall. Police approached the subject identified as 43-year-old Aubrae M. Harper and immediately detained him. Harper was transported to the Peoria Police Department for interviewing purposes and subsequently arrested for Unlawful Possession of a Firearm by a Felon, Aggravated Battery with a Firearm, and an active Peoria County Warrant. Harper was transported to the Peoria County Jail.
600 Blk of S. Western Avenue: At approximately 4:20 p.m. members of the Peoria Police Department’s Special Investigations Division (SID) located a wanted subject in the 600 block of S. Western Avenue. Officers approached the subject identified as 24-year-old Tywan M. Jackson and took him into custody without incident. Jackson was subsequently arrested for Home Invasion and transported to the Peoria County Jail.
2300 Blk of W. Starr Street: At approximately 7:56 p.m. members of the Peoria Police Department’s Special Investigations Division (SID) were conducting patrol in the 2300 block of W. Starr when they observed a group of older juveniles immediately run in different directions when they observed police approaching. Officers did not locate any of the subjects but during a check of their flight paths, officers recovered a loaded handgun that was discarded.
There was also one Shot Spotter alert during the detail.
In addition to the detail, the Peoria Police Department’s Special Investigations Division conducted covert operations associated with ongoing investigations involving known violent offenders.
Peoria’s Criminal Investigations Division conducted follow-ups involving active violent cases.
“(Thursday’s) arrests are an example of how broad our investigations go,” Peoria Police Chief Eric Echevarria said. “Yes, we arrest those committing gun and drug crimes, but we also arrest those committing shoplifting crimes, as well.”
“We want our local retailers to know that Peoria police will do everything within the law to stop these types of crimes from occurring.”
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