SLIDELL, La. — Slidell Police say they arrested five New Orleans teenagers after the group broke in to two St. Tammany gun stores, stealing numerous guns and then led officers on a chase across the Twin Spans.
The chase ended when an officer laid out spike strips, which stopped the car near the Orleans Parish line.
Slidell Police Chief Randy Fandal said he believes the teens, along with others they are associated with, are responsible for several gun store burglaries, carjackings and robberies in St. Tammany, Orleans and Jefferson parishes in the past two months.
Monday's incident started around 3 p.m. when Slidell officers responded to a burglar alarm at Paulie's Pistols at 3805 Pontchartrain Drive and found the glass door shattered. Fandal said officers noticed a suspicious red Mercedes nearby and attempted a traffic stop, at which time the chase began.
Fandal said the suspects in the car began throwing out guns onto I-10 during the chase and police said the guns were traced to a previous gun store burglary at F.I.T.S. Indoor range, which happened on April 2.
Slidell Police believe the five teens are a small part of a much larger group out of New Orleans. Fandal said earlier this month Slidell officers had another encounter with four teens in a stolen car who were caught after leading officers on another high-speed chase. Police said those four teens were linked to recent burglaries, carjackings and stolen guns.
“I’ve said it time and time again, and my stance hasn’t changed. If you come to the Northshore to commit a crime, you will be caught," said Fandal. "I will not stand for it, nor will our citizens. We work hard to keep a safe community, and we aren’t going to allow these teenagers to come and plague our city. My message to anyone thinking about preying on our community is this…we will not stop at the parish or state line. We will pursue you until you are apprehended.”
