Teens arrested in armed robbery after leading deputies on chase into Eatonville

EATONVILLE, Wash. — Four teenagers — three boys and a girl — are suspected of robbing a convenience store in South Hill and leading deputies on a chase in a stolen SUV into Eatonville.

Pierce County deputies were called to the store in the 15200 block of Meridian East at 5:33 a.m. Friday where an employee told them three black males had robbed him at gunpoint and then left in a white Kia Soul.

A deputy saw the Kia headed south at 224th Street East and Meridian East and tried to pull it over, but the driver kept going.

Because armed robbery is a pursuable crime, deputies chased the Kia southbound on Meridian/SR 161 into Eatonville, where deputies briefly lost sight of the SUV due to the highway’s curves.

A few minutes later, a deputy found the SUV and the driver backed into his patrol car, according to the sheriff’s department. The SUV then ran over stop sticks put out by deputies before heading north on SR 161.

When the Kia crashed on Orville Road East near Ohop Lake, the teens ran away. A 16-year-old boy was quickly found and arrested.

A police dog was used to track the remaining teens across a creek and through the yards of several homes. One neighbor told deputies a teen who had been in her yard asked her to call his mom because he was being chased by police.

As deputies continued to search the area, they found clothes the suspects had been wearing during the robbery.

At 8:18 a.m., the police dog found two of the three teens, a 16-year-old boy and a 15-year-old girl, in a neighborhood. Neighbors told police the pair, who had taken off most of their clothes and were soaking wet, had been asking for a ride out of the area.

Deputies said that during the few minutes when they lost sight of the teens in Eatonville, they had tried to steal a Kia, smashing its rear window and damaging the ignition.

Deputies are searching for the gun used in the robbery.

The three teens will be booked into Remann Hall, the Pierce County juvenile detention center.

The fourth suspect, an 18-year-old man, was later spotted walking near SR 161 and Ohop Creek Drive North. He was stopped by Eatonville officers and a witness identified him as being one of the suspects.

Because he is 18, he will be booked into the Pierce County Jail.

©2023 Cox Media Group