'It's appalling': Teenagers arrested, accused of shooting at Glendale officers during burglary investigation
GLENDALE, Ariz. - Police say two teenagers have been arrested after they opened fire at officers who were investigating a burglary at a home in Glendale.
The incident began when officers responded to a possible burglary in progress at 11 p.m. on June 20 at a home near 59th Avenue and Bethany Home Road, Glendale Police said.
Three suspects who were detained in connection to the burglary were placed into a patrol car.
As police continued their investigation, they heard four gunshots and a "whizzing" sound nearby.
"There were seven officers in the area at the time," police said. "Officers extracted the suspects from the vehicle and moved everyone involved to safety."
No injuries were reported.
Suspect allegedly said he ‘wanted to murder a police officer'
Using ShotSpotter technology, police were able to determine that the gunshots came from a nearby apartment complex. Officers went to the apartment complex and obtained surveillance video that showed two juveniles, one of which was known to police, fire several shots at the officers.
The two juvenile suspects, ages 13 and 14, were taken into custody.
During questioning with investigators, the 14-year-old allegedly admitted to taking a gun from his mother's dresser, going outside, and filming the 13-year-old firing at the officers.
"The younger boy fired one shot and the older boy took the gun at that point firing several more rounds," police said in a statement.
The 13-year-old allegedly admitted to police that he "wanted to murder a police officer."
"It’s one thing to have this happen, but when you find out later that it's two juveniles, 13 and 14-year-old that were shooting at you for no apparent reason, it's appalling, and in almost 20 years that I've been here, I've never heard of anything like this," said Sgt. Randy Stewart with Glendale Police.
Both suspects were booked into jail and are accused of attempted murder, aggravated assault, and unlawful discharge of a firearm.
"I think there’s a lot of frustration. Again, when you see something like this happen, and it’s like their lives are the ones that are being targeted for senseless reasons by such young children, and I think there’s some frustration level that’s involved in that," said Sgt. Stewart.
Residents in the area say crime happens with frequency in the area.
"It’s scary. How do I say it? I have a lot of respect for the police. I really do. I wouldn’t recommend anybody to live here, but at times, we don't have a choice," said Kathy Villagomez.
The teens, according to officials, are accused of attempted murder, aggravated assault, and unlawful discharge of a firearm.