Tip leads to juvenile arrests

Published 12:00 am Monday, June 5, 2006

NATCHEZ &8212; Thanks to a tip from a Crime Stoppers call, two juveniles have been arrested in connection with a series of burglaries of AJFC Head Start housed in the Old Sadie V. Thompson School, Natchez Police Chief Mike Mullins said Saturday morning.

According to Mullins, 13- and 15-year-old males have been charged with several counts of burglary and malicious mischief.

&8220;As the investigation continues, we believe that three more juvenile suspects will also be charged,&8221; Mullins said.

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During the investigation, police recovered many of the stolen items from the school at a nearby abandoned house.

Among those items were a Gateway laptop computer, a Canon camcorder, an electronic musical instrument, a microscope, a digital camera, a first aid kit, a bag of books, two headsets and other computer accessories.

&8220;Just as important as the stealing was the mischief,&8221; Mullins said.

During the series of May break-ins of the school building at 1038 North Union St., vandals broke 16 office-door windows, discharged six fire extinguishers, broke into vending machines and ransacked offices.

The approximate value of the damage is $5,000.

Police are still offering a reward for information in connection with a May 26 shooting that injured two teenagers, Mullins said.

Shots were fired shortly after a graduation party on 1192 Martin Luther King St. A 14- and 17-year-old, who were bystanders at the event, were injured.

Shell casings and a handgun were found in the area.

Miss-Lou Crime Stoppers is offering up to $1,000 for information leading to the arrest of the suspects in this case.