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The 14-year-olds attempted to enter Tobacco and Vape Zone in the 1300 block of Wisteria Drive when the employee denied them because of their age around 3:15 p.m., Thursday, July 7, according to Montgomery County Police.
A few hours after the employee denied the kids entrance to the store, they returned with one of the suspects wearing a ski mask over his head. As the employee tried to stop the teens, one of the suspects attempted to hit the employee, they said.
Once the teens forced entry to the store, the first suspect rushed behind the store counter, and the employee attempted to grab him and remove him from the counter, police said. The two got into a physical altercation, during which the suspects grabbed several tobacco products.
The employee then tried to call 911, but the teens knocked the phone out of his hands and ran out of the store, fleeing behind a shopping center.
On Friday, July 8, a police officer recognized the two suspects walking around Century Boulevard near Crystal Rock Drive after seeing their pictures, a spokesperson for the department said. He got out of his vehicle and asked them to stop, and the teens ran off.
The suspects were taken into custody after a brief foot chase and were charged accordingly, according to the department.
The teens were released into the custody of their parents.
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