After five teens in a stolen car fled from the vehicle, Glendale police used an aerial drone to find them.
GLENDALE, Ariz. — Drones helped Glendale police track down a stolen car and arrest the five teens who were filmed crashing it.
It sounds like something from a sci-fi movie, but the Glendale Police Department released its bird's-eye-view footage of the pursuit on Facebook for you to watch.
Back in June, officers responded to reports of a Kia Soul driving recklessly near the Arrowhead Mall. A witness in the area gave police the vehicle's license plate number.
When police ran the plates, it came back that the car had been stolen this morning. The driver reportedly refused to stop for police and tried to drive away before crashing into another vehicle.
After the crash, the group in the car got out and ran westbound on Bell Road. The driver was arrested in a nearby restaurant bathroom, and the other four teens were taken into custody.
You can watch the full video below:
Stolen Kia Arrest + Drone FootageWe have recently been pushing out information regarding the importance of getting software updates completed on Kia and Hyundai vehicles in an effort to prevent thefts. We have also been sharing information regarding Glendale’s UAS drone program. Below is an example of how our drone program helped officers take the driver of a stolen Kia into custody!
On June 27th, detectives from both our Foothills and Gateway Investigations Teams responded to the Arrowhead Mall regarding a Kia Soul driving recklessly. The victim confronted the driver of the Kia, which was occupied by five juveniles. The victim stated they believed the driver had pointed a firearm at them during this confrontation. The victim provided a license plate for the Kia, which returned as a stolen vehicle from earlier in the morning.
Officers located the vehicle and initiated a stop using lights and sirens, but the Kia’s driver failed to comply and began driving recklessly through the outer ring of the mall. This reckless driving resulted in a collision with a secondary vehicle. After the collision, five juveniles bailed out of the vehicle without putting the car into park and began running westbound on Bell Rd.
The driver of the vehicle fled into the bathroom at a local restaurant where officers and detectives took him into custody. The four other occupants were also caught and detained.
As you can see in the video, this was all captured utilizing a drone. The drone program in Glendale allows our officers to get a bird’s-eye view of an incident which, often times, provides a safer perspective into a situation and valuable evidentiary surveillance footage. In this case, the drone was able to capture footage of the driver fleeing from police and causing a hit and run collision. It also assisted officers in locating all five subjects who had fled the scene.
If you drive a Kia or Hyundai, this is a reminder to go to your local dealership complete their security updates. We also encourage you to purchase a steering wheel lock as a deterrent to vehicle theft.
Excellent work by our UAS Drone Pilot, detectives, and officers!
Posted by Glendale Police Department - Arizona on Thursday, July 20, 2023
"In this case, the drone was able to capture footage of the driver fleeing from police and causing a hit-and-run collision," the department said in its Facebook post. "It also assisted officers in locating all five subjects who had fled the scene."
Police stressed that "if you drive a Kia or Hyundai, this is a reminder to go to your local dealership and complete their security updates."
The department did not specify the exact charges that the five teens could be facing in the Facebook post.
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