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Members of the Frederick County Sheriff's Office received a report of a burglary in progress at approximately 4:15 a.m. on Tuesday, July 12 at the Target location on Urbana Park in Frederick, according to a spokesperson from the sheriff's office.
The Frederick County Emergency Communications Center said that dispatchers informed the responding deputies that overnight employees could hear someone attempting to force entry into the building through the roof hatch on Tuesday morning.
Upon arrival, investigators located a white man wearing a grey hooded sweatshirt running on the roof, according to the spokesperson. While deputies established a perimeter and gave verbal commands, the suspect proceeded to climb down from the roof to a loading area at the back of the building and fled on foot.
“Deputies initiated a foot pursuit that led through the MARC Train station parking lot, across the railroad tracks, down the steep embankment, and into the adjacent woods,” officials said.
“The suspect, despite continuous commands to stop and show his hands to deputies, refused to stop, and entered a field of tall grass and weeds.”
Deputies then determined it was no longer safe to pursue the suspect, not knowing his position or knowing if he was armed, prompting them to enlist the assistance of a police helicopter, according to the sheriff’s office.
The suspect was located after several passes, officials said, and was guided by the air unit to a “hotspot” in the middle of the field where the suspect was located and taken into custody by deputies.
Initially, investigators said that the suspect was uncooperative, providing false names and refusing to truly identify himself. At the county Law Enforcement Center, deputies were able to identify the juvenile, who was charged with:
The minor was charged with:
- Attempted burglary;
- Fleeing and eluding;
- Providing uniformed officers a false name to avoid prosecution;
- Failure to obey a lawful order;
- Possession of burglary tools.
Officials noted that during the foot pursuit, a Frederick County Sheriff’s Office deputy suffered an injury and was transported to the Frederick Health Hospital for evaluation and treatment.
Burglary tools were also located on the roof of Target near the hatch where employees heard him attempting to break-in.
No return court date has been announced for the minor.
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