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Officials say that indictments have been filed, resulting in multiple people being charged, all of whom were between the ages of 15 and 19 years old.
According to Chief Deputy Candace McLaren Lanham, 11 people have been charged in more than 80 crimes that include a rape, home invasion, more than a dozen armed carjackings, commercial armed robberies, 59 robberies, and nearly two dozen kidnappings.
"Most were going to work or going about their day when they were threatened by criminals with guns who threatened to harm them," she said during a press conference on July 10.
Officials made note that both crime sprees were committed by two separate groups of suspects.
The first series of crimes involved the suspects ordering cars on Uber or Lyft, and when the driver arrived, they would carjack the driver and use their cars to pick up other passengers who were subsequently robbed.
Lanham said that during those robberies, many of the drivers were kidnapped and shoved into the backseat or trunk of their own vehicle, leaving them to watch or listen to the crimes in real time.
"Most of the victims ... Something as simple as driving a car or ordering a ride home is now a terrifying or traumatic experience," she said.
The second criminal enterprise involved the robbery of delivery drivers at gunpoint before they escalated to violent commercial robberies where they targeted restaurants and convenience stores.
"All of the victims were simply at work trying to earn an honest living when their life was turned upside down," Lanham added.
"These indictments also highlight the problem of gun violence in our state," she continued. "In each of these patterns, most of these crimes were committed by criminals armed with handguns (one of which was a 'ghost gun.')
"These crimes emphasize the importance of stopping the flow of illegal guns into our streets and stopping the flow of violent criminals."
Among those indicted by the Maryland Attorney General:
19-year-old Corey Sabb, Jr. who was charged with 155 counts;
- 20-year-old Dewayne Sanders who was charged with 245 counts;
- 18-year-old Allen Hill who was charged with 76 counts;
- 17-year-old charged with 251 counts;
- 17-year-old charged with 94 counts.
Several teens are also set to be charged as adults.
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