A teen suspected of a burglary in the Hillside area was arrested Monday thanks to citizens’ reports of a suspicious person, according to police.
Around 10:15 a.m., the Anchorage Police Department began receiving calls about a suspicious person in the Upper O’Malley Road area knocking on doors, ringing doorbells and running away when someone answered.
A responding officer spotted a male teenage driver matching the description of the suspicious person, and pulled the vehicle over. As the officer began walking toward the sedan, it took off, according to APD spokeswoman Jennifer Castro.
Castro says the vehicle crashed and flipped over near the intersection of Schuss Drive and Upper O’Malley Road. The driver ran away, but police found him a short while later in a nearby yard. A stolen firearm was also discovered when police arrested him.
Initial investigation revealed the teen had been involved in a burglary at a nearby home, during which he stole a vehicle. Police have not confirmed if the vehicle the suspect crashed was the same vehicle.
The suspect, a 17-year-old male, was taken to McLaughlin Youth Center on multiple charges, including two counts of second-degree theft, third-degree criminal mischief, fifth-degree weapons misconduct, first-degree vehicle theft, fourth-degree theft, failure to stop at the direction of an officer and first-degree burglary, according to Castro.
The suspect’s name was withheld because he is a minor.