Juveniles face charges including burglary, carjacking in Abbeville

Abbeville Police arrested two juveniles Monday on multiple charges, including a carjacking that occurred Sunday night.
The juveniles, who were both previously in state custody, escaped a youth home in Ascension Parish, according to Abbeville Det. Leland Laseter.
At 9:51 p.m. Sunday, officers responded to a carjacking call at a store on Veteran’s Memorial Drive in Abbeville. Officers arrived and spoke to the alleged victims. Laseter said the alleged victim came out of the store and headed to her vehicle, inside of which her husband was waiting.
“She was approached by a male who brandished a gun and demanded money,” Laseter said. “She told him she didn’t have any money and the male ordered her to stand behind the truck. The suspect then opened the door to the truck, pointed the gun at her husband and ordered him out the vehicle.”
During that time, the wife ran inside the store to have someone call police. Her husband followed shortly behind her and said the truck had been stolen.
Officers searched the area. While doing so, officers were flagged down by someone who reported a male hiding behind cars at a nearby car lot.
Officers exited their vehicle and headed to the parking lot of the dealership. At that point, according to Laseter, a maroon-colored vehicle shot out from the car lot at a high rate of speed. The vehicle missed the driveway and hit a ditch before traveling to Odea Street and Richard Street , where it eventually crashed. The driver fled on foot. An agent with the Vermilion/Municipal Task Force, who was in the area, managed to get a description of the suspect, who went into a wooded area.
Officers discovered that the maroon car had been stolen from the dealership. Arriving at the dealership, Laseter said officers found broken glass leading into the office. Officers made entry and cleared the building.
“We noticed that all of the keys were stolen for all of the vehicles outside,” Laseter said. “We processed the area.”
Around 3 a.m. Monday, officers received a complaint of a male in the parking lot of the same dealership. Officers arrived and observed a pick-up truck on the lot with its doors open. Dozens of keys were spread around on the seat and on the ground.
“The officers then saw lights flashing on another car,” Laseter said. “The officers surrounded the area and found a black male hiding in another car belonging to the dealership.”
The subject attempted to flee the scene before being subdued by officers. Officers then took the juvenile suspect into custody.
“At the scene,we recovered a 110 sets of keys,” Laseter said. “We met with the owners and manager and found five vehicles we can prove the suspect went in. The keys were in those vehicles. The suspect had unlocked most of the vehicles. They moved one of the vehicles across the parking lot.”
Officers transported the juvenile suspect to the Abbeville Police Department around 3:30 a.m.
“At that time,” Laseter said, “dispatch contacts me and says the truck that had been stolen was located in a hotel parking lot in Lafayette , off Highway 90.”
Laseter said he traveled to Lafayette to process that scene. He took the truck into APD custody.
“When I got back, we were able to question the juvenile suspect,” Laseter said. “We discovered that he and another juvenile broke out of youth challenge center around St. Gabriel by Ascension Parish. They broke out, stole a car and came to Abbeville in that stolen car.”
That car broke down on the side of the road near the Chris Crusta Airport in Abbeville. Officers located the vehicle.
“Once we found that information,” Laseter said, “we immediately located the vehicle and obtained a search warrant. Once inside, we located six guns, four riffles and two shotguns.”
A further investigation led to the discovery that the six guns had been reported stolen from a business in Broussard over the weekend.
“We contacted the Broussard Police Department,” Laseter said. “An investigative team from their department came to Abbeville. We are working closely with them on the case.”
Around 1:30 p.m. Monday, Broussard police located the second juvenile allegedly involved in the Abbeville carjacking.
“Once they came here,” Laseter said, “the Broussard PD contacted their patrol division to be on the lookout for him.
“The chief called us about 1:30 p.m. and told us they had him.”
That juvenile faces charges of attempted armed robbery, carjacking, burglary of a business, and possession of stolen property.
The juvenile arrested around 3 a.m. is charged with burglary of a business, one count of theft of an auto, four counts of attempted theft of an auto, one count of resisting an officer, one count of resisting with force or violence, and possession of stolen property.
“They are both going to be placed in detention centers based on their charges,” Laseter said.