FROM STAFF REPORTS

Two juveniles face charges in Iredell County Juvenile Court in connection with the theft of a vehicle in Troutman.

After running away from a group home in Troutman on Monday, the juveniles went to Troutman Tire and Auto, stole a vehicle belonging to an employee and fled the area, according to a Troutman Police Department news release.

The employee called 911 to report the theft. TPD officers used the town’s Flock camera system and learned the vehicle had been in Mooresville a few minutes earlier, according to the news release.

After being alerted about the stolen vehicle, Mooresville police officers located the unoccupied vehicle in the Walmart parking lot off Norman Station Boulevard, police said.

MPD officers staged in the area located the juveniles as they returned to the vehicle, according to the news release. The juveniles were detained, and the vehicle’s owner was contacted to come to take possession of the vehicle.

The N.C. Department of Juvenile Justice was contacted and declined to take the juveniles into secured custody. They were returned to the group home and will face charges in Juvenile Court for larceny of a motor vehicle.

The Troutman Police Department is appreciative of all the assistance provided by Mooresville Police Department, Chief Josh Watson said in the news release. This case demonstrates how positive working relationships between local agencies benefit all citizens, he added.