Juveniles stealing SUV quickly apprehended

RED OAK – Red Oak Police were dispatched to Watkins Park in the 200 block of Live Oak Street this past weekend in response to a stolen vehicle in progress.

Police arrived around 10:50 a.m. after being advised that several black male subjects had forcefully taken the keys from a 14-year-old girl who was taking an item from her parent’s vehicle, a 2006 white Ford Expedition. 

The suspects, all male juveniles from outside the City of Red Oak were not named due to their age pursuant to state law. 

One suspect was from Duncanville, another from Grand Prairie and two were from Dallas. All four were referred to the Ellis County Juvenile Detention Center for their alleged involvement in the robbery and engaging in organized crime offenses. 

Witnesses said three of the four suspects entered the White 2006 Ford Expedition and fled the scene heading eastbound on Red Oak Road towards SH-342. 

Family members of the victim followed the vehicle in their personal vehicles and relayed their location to dispatch, who then further relayed the location to Red Oak Police Department personnel. 

The three subjects quickly bailed out of the stolen vehicle in the parking lot of 109 W. Red Oak Road as multiple Red Oak Police Department personnel arrived. 

Two of the three subjects were taken into custody after short foot pursuits.

Red Oak Police Department personnel started a canine track for the third subject and advised dispatch to contact the Ovilla Police Department and Ellis County Sheriff’s office for assistance. The canine tracked the third subject to bushes where he was hiding and he was immediately taken into custody.

The fourth subject had remained in the park area and residents trapped him in a park bathroom. 

Red Oak Police Department personnel requested the Ovilla Police Department and Ellis County Sheriff’s Office personnel be directed to Watkins Park for the fourth subject who was quickly taken into custody. 

The Ford Expedition was returned to the owner.