O’FALLON, Mo. – Caught in the act. Three juvenile suspects are in custody, accused of breaking into an O’Fallon, Missouri, residence and stealing the homeowner’s weapon.
Authorities said they are seeking charges against the teen suspects, who’re in the Juvenile Division.
Officers said the 911 call made the difference.
The dispatchers took the dramatic 911 call of a burglary in progress Tuesday around 5 p.m. on Mariposa Drive. A neighbor named Tom made the call.
“I got on the phone right away and called 911 and told police what was going on,” he said. “We saw someone breaking into the windows.”
Tom stopped his neighbor from entering the home, telling him three teens had gone inside, and that he’d already called police. He said police arrived in less than two minutes.
“It absolutely could have been a worse outcome if the homeowner wouldn’t have been stopped from going inside. There’s no telling what could have happened there,” Sgt. Bryan Harr, O’Fallon Police Department, said. “And if the information had not been given to us so quickly and accurately, we may still be looking for three suspects.”
Police said the 911 call possibly saved lives. Officers found the teens in possession of a stolen handgun and apprehended them.
Sgt. Harr credits the caller for providing law enforcement with quick and accurate information.
