ST. LUCIE COUNTY — Four people, including two juveniles reported missing from Charlotte County, were arrested Friday morning after deputies located a stolen vehicle from Brevard County and pursued it to a dead end in western St. Lucie County, authorities said.
According to the St. Lucie County Sheriff’s Office, deputies spotted the stolen vehicle around 10:20 a.m. Oct. 24 and attempted a traffic stop after it turned onto Ideal Holding Road. The driver left the roadway and crashed into brush along a canal bank.
Four occupants ran from the vehicle, prompting deputies to set up a perimeter. Inside the vehicle, deputies found a replica Sig P365 airsoft pistol, several ski masks, and two gaming systems.
A juvenile suspect was taken into custody at the crash site, while K-9 Deputy Angulo and his K-9 partner Viktor tracked and apprehended a second juvenile about 200 yards away.
Two adult suspects tried to escape by swimming across the C-24 Canal into a nearby citrus grove, the sheriff’s office said. Fort Pierce Police K-9 Officer Patriani and his dog Max joined the search. After tracking several hundred yards, K-9 Max located and apprehended 19-year-old Gavin Guthrie of Melbourne, resulting in a K-9 bite. The fourth suspect, 18-year-old John Mullins, also of Melbourne, was taken into custody soon after.
Guthrie and Mullins were charged with grand theft of a motor vehicle, contributing to the delinquency of a minor, trespassing, and resisting arrest without violence. Guthrie also faces charges of reckless driving and fleeing and eluding law enforcement.
The two juveniles, who were confirmed to be missing from Charlotte County, were charged with resisting arrest without violence and turned over to the Department of Juvenile Justice.