4-Year-Old Caught With Kids Accused of Burglarizing Church

Sign up for the St. Pete Patch newsletter!

When St. Petersburg Police received an early Saturday morning call about a burglary in progress at a local church chances are officers didn’t anticipate finding a 4-year-old among the suspects.

But, that’s what happened, according to the department.

The case against the kids began to unfold around 1:41 a.m. Saturday when police received a call about a burglary in progress at the 20th Street Church of Christ, 820 20th St. N. When police arrived, they spotted the children, ages 4 to 14, and told them to stop.

The kids, however, ignored those commands “and took off running and climbed a fence until a K9 unit stopped them,” an email from the department to media stated.

The children are accused of breaking into a locked shed, burglarizing two church vans and entering the church through a window, the email said. The property is under renovation for the new Police Athletic League program, the agency noted.

Three of the children, who are not being identified because of their ages, now face criminal charges. A 14-year-old boy was charged with two counts of vehicle burglary, a count of commercial burglary, obstruction and possession of burglary tools. A 14-year-old girl was charged with obstruction, commercial burglary and two counts of vehicle burglary. An 11-year-old girl was also charged with commercial burglary and obstruction.

The 4-year-old was released to relatives, police noted.

Image via Shutterstock