KENTWOOD, Michigan — The Kentwood Police Department released new information about the burglary at the Woodland Mall on Friday, Aug. 16.
After finishing their investigation, they say that three teens in custody got away with $20,000 worth of merchandise ranging from clothing and jewelry to cell phones.
"We've sent a request for eight felony charges to the prosecutor's office and we're still waiting on them to finalize that," said Kentwood Police Captain Bryan Litwin.
Two 15-year-old's and a 16-year-old are accused of breaking into the Woodland Mall, loading up stolen merchandise into a stolen van and hiding from police.
Litwin said the prosecutor's office is looking at charging two of the juveniles as adults. "One of the juveniles is close to turning 17, but it's primarily because of their previous records," he said.
Not only did they steal thousands of dollars of merchandise, but they caused significant damage to the stores, according to the police.
"There was also an additional $15,000 in damage done to the mall and the properties inside with the stores," Litwin said.
Officers reviewed the mall's surveillance footage and said the group initially tried to enter the Apple store in the mall. "It was their first target, [but] because of their security measures, they couldn't gain entrance," Litwin said.
Kentwood Police don't have any indication that this incident is related to the dozen other cell phone store burglaries that have happened this summer.
"We've had other agencies that have contacted us that are working with us looking at this group for previous cases," Litwin said.
Detectives were initially searching for two additional suspects.
"We are down to one individual after reviewing everything else that was involved that we did not get in custody that night, we're still trying to figure out the identity of that individual," Litwin said.
Kentwood Police are recommending cell phone stores and other businesses to lock up merchandise and make it as inconvenient as possible for someone to get in. They say the longer it takes thieves to get inside, the more likely it is that they'll move on to another location.
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