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Police chase ends in arrest after nine luxury cars stolen from Wisconsin dealership

Police chase ends in arrest after nine luxury cars stolen from Wisconsin dealership
Police chase ends in arrest after nine luxury cars stolen from Wisconsin dealership 02:28

WAUKESHA, Wisc. (CBS) -- A high-speed chase started in Milwaukee County and ended near the Illinois border after several luxury cars were stolen from a Wisconsin dealership.

Waukesha police say nine cars were stolen from a Jaguar and Land Rover dealership on Sunday.

Waukesha police Capt. Dan Baumann said investigators believed the suspects were part of an organized group of teens from the Chicago area.

"This is an intentional act where you broke into a business with eight of your buddies thinking you're fun and going to make a couple of bucks trying to sell this in the Chicago area, and Waukesha police say no," said Waukesha Police Capt. Dan Baumann

On Sunday, several cars were seen in a Milwaukee suburb before they took off on I-894. A tipster told police they saw masked teens traveled together to a gas station in nearby West Allis.

Luxury car thieves lead police on high-speed chase from Wisconsin to Illinois border 02:27

Then, the suspects led police on a dramatic chase.

Officers say at least one car struck stop sticks and crashed into another vehicle on I-94 near Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin.

The driver, a 17-year-old from Chicago, was arrested. Illinois State Police located another car abandoned at a business in Deerfield. 

So far, six of the nine cars have been recovered.

Police said it was a strategic and, likely, professional job.

"This wasn't just a group of kids that just decided to stay up late one night playing video games and say, 'Hey let's go see if the nine of us can travel two hours away to commit crimes,'" Baumann said. "Because that's not something that normally happens."

The 17-year-old appeared in court on Tuesday, where he was charged with burglary, receiving stolen property, and criminal damage to property, among other charges. His bond was set at $50,000.

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