ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. – A string of violent crimes committed by teenagers across the City of St. Louis and the county has left many on edge.
James Clark with the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis said everyone has a role to play in helping to stop teens from getting involved in crimes.
The St. Louis County Police Department said a string of burglaries ended with two teens in custody. They said back in September, five handguns were stolen from Denny Dennis Sporting Goods. The teens then allegedly used a stolen car to commit several burglaries at businesses in north county in December, according to police. This week, officers arrested the teens and found the five guns from Denny Dennis Sporting Goods.
Clark said it’s time for leaders who grew up in these neighborhoods to connect with teens and help create a sense of community within the neighborhoods.
“We’ve got to look back and say, ‘How do we bring St. Louis up from the bottom?’ and it starts in the neighborhoods,” Clark said. “We’ve got to give the families and the single mothers, and now the grandmothers, and now the grandparents, the support that they need to rear children because they are being left alone because of the breakdown in overall society.”
The two juveniles arrested this week in St. Louis County are both facing charges of burglary and theft and have been sent to family court.
The arrests come just days after teens in an unrelated situation were arrested outside City Foundry STL in Midtown. They were released back to their parents.
FOX 2 asked St. Louis County Court if the teens were still in custody and was told, “The 21st Circuit Court is unable to comment on possible and/or pending litigation in the Juvenile Court and/or the Juvenile Detention Center.”