Speeding SUVs Crash, Found to Be Stolen From Bethesda Owners

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BETHESDA, MD — Two luxury SUVs racing along a Bethesda street crashed as the drivers fled Montgomery County Police, who learned the vehicles were stolen.

Police have arrested and charged Jalen Frederick Carpenter, 22, of Gallatin Street, NW in Washington, D.C., and Tajuan Reginald Lee, 22, of Kansas Avenue, NW, Washington, D.C., with motor vehicle theft and other charges.

An officer on routine patrol about 3:30 a.m. Sunday reportedly saw three vehicles, including two SUVs, speeding on Woodmont Avenue toward Battery Lane in Bethesda. As the officer activated his emergency lights and siren, he saw that a Mazda CX-9 had crashed into the concrete median on Woodmont Avenue just before Wisconsin Avenue.

The officer then saw a suspect get out of the Mazda and jump into a Mercedes-Benz GL450. That SUV drove onto northbound Route 355 (Wisconsin Avenue).

Suspecting that the SUV driver was driving under the influence, officers chased the vehicle north on Route 355, as it swerved, struck the curb, and left the roadway numerous times, police said. At Rockville Pike (Route 355) and West Edmonston Drive, the Mercedez-Benz attempted to make a right turn and crashed into the concrete median.

Four suspects ran from the vehicle; police with K9 dogs found Carpenter and Lee hiding outside in a gated area of a business. The other two suspects were not located.

One of the SUVs was registered to an address on Lowell Street in Bethesda and the other vehicle was registered to an address on Marywood Road in Bethesda. When police talked to the owners, they learned the SUVs had been stolen from their driveways sometime after 10:30 p.m. that night. In both cases, the keys to the stolen vehicles had been left in another vehicle in the driveway and that vehicle had been rifled though.

Carpenter and Lee were charged with criminal acts including two counts of motor vehicle theft, obstructing and hindering, and possession of burglar tools.

Lee was also charged with possession of a controlled dangerous substance (cocaine) and carrying a concealed dangerous weapon (knife).

Detectives continue to investigate the possible involvement of the suspects in thefts from vehicles that were reported during the same time period and in the areas from where the vehicles had been stolen.

»Photos of suspects Jalen Frederick Carpenter and Tajuan Reginald Lee, courtesy of Montgomery County Police