A Bloomington Police Department detective followed a trail of stolen items to the door of an apartment Wednesday after several reports of items being taken from parked cars. The suspect they were looking for was asleep on the couch.
The 17-year-old accused of stealing from at least 11 cars parked near The Quarry apartments on South Copper Beech Way was surrounded by bags of items he stole.
The items included clothing, a backpack, a baseball bat, a book and a phone charger.
When police entered the West Hearthwood Court apartment the trail of items led to, the 18-year-old who lived in the apartment said the 17-year-old knocked on his door at about 7 a.m. that day. He reported that the 17-year-old said he was kicked out of his house and needed somewhere to stay.
The 18-year-old agreed to let him stay for one day. It is unclear whether the two knew each other, BPD Capt. Steve Kellams said.
The boy then began hauling bags of items into the apartment, which the 18-year-old told officers he assumed were his belongings.
Kellams said the 17-year-old broke into at least 11 cars, stealing multiple items from each. He will be charged with unauthorized entry for each car as well as theft for each item taken.
The boy was transported to the Southwest Indiana Regional Youth Village, a juvenile detention center, Kellams said.
