Five teenagers were arrested after 16 vehicles at Peachford Hospital and a neighboring condominium complex in Dunwoody were broken into early Thursday morning, according to police.
Officers got a call about an auto break-in at the Sterling of Dunwoody condos on Peachford Road just after midnight, Dunwoody police said in a news release. As officers began checking the area, one of them spotted the suspects actively breaking into cars at the hospital, which is about a seven-minute walk from the condos, the release said.
The suspects drove away when the officer tried to make contact with them, and their vehicle was located a short time later at a nearby public storage facility. They were seen climbing the fence behind the building, police said.
A perimeter was established around the business, and one suspect was apprehended. A K-9 team from Brookhaven police was then brought in to track the remaining suspects, who were all found hiding together, according to the release. One tried to run away but was taken into custody by the police K-9.
The suspects were identified as 17-year-olds Kenneth Lester, Teneldric Boykins, Quavion Black and Marcus Carter and a 15-year-old whose name was not released. They are accused of trying to break into 19 vehicles, with only 16 being successful. The vehicle they drove had been reported stolen, and police said they recovered two stolen firearms.
They each face a slew of charges, including 23 counts of entering auto, multiple counts of theft by receiving and obstruction. They were booked into the DeKalb County jail, and the youngest was taken to the Metro Regional Youth Detention Center.
It is not the first time cars have been broken into at Atlanta area hospitals.
In December 2021, at least 20 vehicles were broken into at Piedmont Atlanta Hospital, driving the facility to bolster its already around-the-clock security.
The year before, in April, an emergency room nurse said he was treating a critically injured patient at Wellstar Atlanta Medical Center South in East Point when he learned someone had shattered his car’s window, popped the hood and took off with its battery.
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