Burglary, Pursuit Ends With 2 Youths in Jail and 2 Sought

NORCO —  youths were in custody Friday on burglary charges after a high-speed chase through the streets of Norco, a spokeswoman for the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department said.

Meanwhile, authorities were searching for two other youths involved in the incident who managed to escape.

The chase began about 11:30 p.m. Wednesday, shortly after a patrolling sheriff’s deputy saw two youths run from a convenience store at 4th Street and Sierra Avenue and jump into a waiting truck that sped away, Deputy Debra Wilson said.

The pair allegedly had stolen four 12-packs of beer from the Circle K Market, she said.

Broke Free and Fled

When the officer pulled the blue pickup truck over and ordered its four occupants to leave the truck, three of the young men complied, Wilson said, but the fourth refused. After a scuffle with the deputy, the youth broke free and fled, Wilson said.

Meanwhile, one of the other three suspects also ran away, and the remaining two youths jumped back in the pickup truck and drove off. The deputy chased the pair--at speeds of up to 85 m.p.h.--to Valley View Avenue and First Street, where he arrested them, Wilson said.

The two teen-agers, whose names were withheld because they are minors, both were booked on charges of burglary and resisting arrest. The driver of the truck was also charged with evading arrest, reckless driving, running stop signs, speeding, driving without lights and driving without a license.

The two teen-agers were being held in Riverside Juvenile Hall on Friday while deputies searched for the two youths who got away. The pair in custody claimed to know only the first names of the other two, Wilson added.