AURORA | Police arrested an Aurora 17-year-old boy after he drove a stolen car through a school parking lot and then barricaded himself in his home.
On Tuesday, Aurora Police responded to Cherokee Trail High School school, after reports that the boy stole his mother’s car and drove recklessly through the parking lot, hitting a parked car. Police say he also stabbed a tire on an off-duty sheriff’s deputy vehicle before fleeing the scene.
The boy has not been identified because he is a juvenile. His mother had reported him missing and her car stolen on Monday.
Then, on Wednesday afternoon, police responded to an apartment in the 23400 block of Easter Drive after the teen’s mother called and said he had returned home and was acting erratically and throwing things around the house.
In a press briefing on Wednesday, Aurora Police Deputy Chief Michael Gaskill said the teen barricaded himself in the house and wouldn’t communicate with officers. Gaskill said at one point, the teen was throwing makeshift Molotov cocktails off the balcony.
Aurora’s SWAT team was called to the scene because of the barricade, but after several hours, the boy came out of the house. No one on scene was injured.
“The teenager came out without incident and gave up,” Gaskill said.
Charges for the barricade incident are pending, but the boy has been charged for taking a knife on school property, criminal mischief, reckless driving and charges related to a hit and run crash.
Gaskill said the teen was evaluated by the police department’s Critical Incident Response Team, which includes mental healthcare professionals.
Also on Wednesday, police responded to Overland High School after a 16-year-old student brought a loaded weapon to school. Both schools are in the Cherry Creek schools district. The student has been charged with possession of a handgun by a juvenile and possession of a weapon on school grounds. There were no injuries reported from the incident.