Pinellas deputies arrested a 16-year-old boy after he crashed a stolen vehicle into a home and fled the scene on foot in unincorporated Clearwater.
According to deputies, at about 11:35 p.m. on Thursday, March 7, 2019, deputies were called to a residence located at 1354 Eastfield Drive in Clearwater, for a car that crashed into a private residence.
When deputies arrived, witnesses told deputies that multiple juveniles fled the scene on foot after someone crashed a 2015 Kia Soul into the garage area of the occupied home. No one in the home was injured.
Deputies from the K-9 Unit and the Flight Unit responded to the scene and began tracking the subjects.
Deputies say they apprehended the driver of the vehicle, 16-year-old Kaleb Wagner of Clearwater, who was found near the residence. Wagner’s 13-year-old passenger was also located near the crash site.
Through the course of the investigation, deputies learned that Wagner had stolen a family member’s Kia Soul and was driving it on Eastfield Drive when he lost control of the vehicle. The vehicle left the roadway and crashed into a mailbox and a parked car before crashing into the home causing significant property damage.
Deputies say Wagner was already on felony probation and was being monitored by the Habitual Offender Monitoring Enforcement program, a task force aimed at reducing teen crime.
The Sheriff’s Office reports that Wagner had his GPS ankle monitor removed at about 5 p.m. on Thursday, March 7, 2019, after he completed his graduating sanction period of 30-days set forth by the court.
Wagner was on felony probation for Grand Theft Auto at the time of the crash.
Wagner and his passenger were both transported to a local hospital for non-life threatening injuries.
Wagner will be transported to the Pinellas Juvenile Assessment Center following his release from the hospital.
Deputies charged Wagner with one count of Grand Theft Auto, one count of Leaving the Scene of a Crash with Injury, three counts of Leaving the Scene of a Crash with Property Damage, and one count of Violation of Probation.
Wagner’s passenger was not charged