MEDFORD — On Thursday, July 4, 2024, at approximately 11 a.m., the Medford Emergency Communications Center received a call from an employee at DICK’s Sporting Goods on 3850 Mystic Valley Parkway, reporting a shoplifting incident. According to a statement from the Medford Police Department posted on Facebook, the suspects—five teenagers—fled in a vehicle towards Riverside Avenue. The employee provided a license plate number, and dispatchers confirmed the vehicle had been reported stolen from Belmont earlier that morning.
Responding officers spotted the suspects’ vehicle on Riverside Avenue and attempted to pull it over. However, the vehicle sped away, continuing onto Commercial Street, then Route 16 westbound to Winthrop Street, and eventually to High Street. The pursuit ended when the vehicle crashed through a fence at a residence on Alto Drive.
Two suspects were detained in the vehicle, while three others fled. Officers quickly apprehended one of the fleeing suspects and later located the two remaining individuals, who were arrested after attempting to hide in the area.
None of the responding officers or suspects were injured during the incident.
The five teenagers are now in custody, with identifications being confirmed and charges pending, the Medford Police Department said in its statement.
The Massachusetts State Police K9 and Airwing Units and the Arlington Police K9 Unit provided assistance in locating and apprehending the suspects.
