Teenage Boy Threatens Family After Daylight Car Break-In

A teenage boy pulled an object believed to be a gun on a Whitefish Bay woman and her father on Friday night when they caught the boy rifling through her father's unlocked car.

The suspect, believed to be between 14-16 years old and who was wearing a black hooded sweatshirt, dark jeans and possibly gloves, was found in the front seat of their mini-van parked in the driveway in the 5700 block of North Bay Ridge Avenue at 5:44 p.m. Friday.

When the boy saw the woman and her father exit the home, he fled to a maroon mini-van waiting on the street. The boy then pulled out an object that the woman believed to be a black handgun and yelled at her to get back in the house. 

The mini-van then fled south down Bay Ridge and west on Silver Spring Drive. Police responded, but were unable to locate the vehicle. No property was taken.

Whitefish Bay police believe the boy was also involved in a vehicle theft in Glendale about 15 minutes later. In that case, a homeowner in the 1200 block of West Riverview Drive reported a man driving her van out of the driveway, with another maroon van waiting up the street.

When Glendale police located the stolen vehicle at Hampton Avenue and Green Bay Avenue, they followed the vehicle until North 21st Street, where the driver jumped out of the driver's door while the car was still in motion. The van continued on to strike a parked vehicle and a tree before coming to a stop in a front yard.

The boy fled on foot and could not be located. 

Whitefish Bay Police Chief Robert Jacobs said this attempted theft report is the first case the department has seen in a while in which someone has entered a car during the daylight hours, and the threat toward the family elevates the seriousness of the situation. Jacobs said his department is working in cooperation with the Glendale Police Department to find the people responsible for the crimes.