View All

Top Jobs


Latest featured videos from Journal-News.com

Article Tools

E-mail this page Print this page

E-mail Newsletter

Keep up with local news and get breaking news alerts with our e-mail newsletter See Sample | Privacy Policy

Share

Del.icio.us
Digg
Facebook
Furl
Google
Reddit
Stumbleupon
Y! MyWeb

Police: Teen traded gaming system for stolen car

Speeds reached 90 mph when 16-year-old gave chase, according to reports.

By Meagan Engle

Staff Writer

Tuesday, July 22, 2008

FRANKLIN — Grand theft auto isn't a game in real life.

That's what a 16-year-old Hamilton boy learned Monday, July 21, after trading his PlayStation 2 gaming console for a stolen car.

According to Franklin police, the teenage driver led authorities on a high-speed chase through the city and onto Interstate 75 that ended miles after he crashed the ill-gotten vehicle into a guardrail.

The 16-year-old driver and his 15-year-old passenger, of Fairborn, were taken to Miami Valley Hospital for injuries sustained from the crash, according to Franklin police.

Police said the 16-year-old told them he had traded a PlayStation 2 for the stolen Oldsmobile. The teen told police he figured the car was stolen because it did not require an ignition key and "he isn't stupid," according to the police report.

The 15-year-old passenger told police he'd only been friends with the driver for a couple of months and that they were headed to Franklin to "meet some friends." He claimed he didn't know the car was stolen and that he told the driver several times to "stop, he didn't need to do this," according to the police report.

Officers initially tried to stop the vehicle in Franklin at 1:41 a.m. after its license plate showed it was stolen out of Fairborn, according to the report.

The driver allegedly led police on a chase from Conover Drive onto Interstate 75. The pursuit reached speeds of up to 90 mph before the teen drove off the side of the highway and over corrected across three lanes of traffic before striking a guardrail head-on, according to the report.

The teen tried to continue onto Interstate 675 with heavy front end damage to the car and a busted tire, police said. The car, which was spewing sparks and pieces of metal and tire, finally came to a stop because of a smoking engine, according to the report.

The driver was charged with failure to comply with an order and receiving stolen property, both fourth-degree felony charges, according to the report.

No charges were filed against the 15-year-old, the report shows.

No conditions were available on the two teens late Monday, according to hospital officials. However, the 16-year-old was said to be in the surgery center.

According to the police report, both teens suffered head injuries from hitting the windshield and the 16-year-old sustained a bad leg injury.

Contact this reporter at (513) 705-2551 or mengle@coxohio.com.

Journal-News.com:

Copyright © 2008 Hamilton Journal-News, Hamilton, Ohio, USA. All rights reserved.

By using Journal-News.com, you accept the terms of our visitor agreement and privacy policy. You may wish to note our other business policies.

This website is ACAP-enabled