Police: Minn. boy, 14, arrested after stealing school bus

MINNEAPOLIS - A 14-year-old Minnesota boy was taken into custody after police say he stole a school bus Monday morning, reports CBS Minnesota.

Roseville Police Lt. Lorne Rosand says a bus driver for Centerline Charter Corporation, which provides service to the St. Paul Public Schools, left her bus at a gas station and went in and got a cup of coffee. When she returned, the bus was nowhere to be found.

“The suspect said he saw the bus abandoned for about 20 minutes, felt the need to return the bus back to Centerline Charter, got in the bus and drove it north and pulled into the Centerline Charter bus stop,” Rosand said. 

As the bus was pulling in, a manager at Centerline Charter received a call from the bus driver whose bus was stolen, according to Rosand.

“The operations manager sees (the stolen) bus in the parking lot being driven in, confirms it’s (the stolen) bus, gets out and runs to his vehicle and radios to call the police because he’s now following the stolen bus,” Rosand said.

The boy reportedly fled the bus station when he heard police being notified on the radio.

With the Centerline manager following closely, police say the boy attempted to drive off, but encountered traffic.

“The youth went around traffic, tried to negotiate the fuel pumps at the Shell station but was unable to do so. He sideswiped the pumps, which disabled the bus and allowed the operations (manager) to take custody of the youth,” Rosand said.

Police said that’s when the boy started to cry and said he was just trying to return it the bus to the station, reports CBS Minnesota.

“In my 30 years of law enforcement, this is a first for me,” Rosand said. “I’ve never heard of a 14-year-old stealing a school bus… We’re just very fortunate and lucky that no one was hurt during this ordeal.”

The boy was taken to the Ramsey County Juvenile Detention Center in St. Paul. He could face a felony auto theft charge, which, if he is convicted, could result in five years in prison and/or a fine of up to $10,000, according to the station.