Three minors among four arrested for armed carjacking in Baltimore County

BALTIMORE - Three minors are among four teens facing serious charges for an armed carjacking that happened in Baltimore county over the weekend.

Three of the suspects are between the ages of 14 and 15.

"It was pretty brazen," Kathy Wilder, from Baltimore County, said.

Around 7:30 a.m. Saturday morning Baltimore County detectives say four teenagers carjacked a woman in the parking lot of a shopping center on North Charles Street.

Police said they were armed, but the woman was not hurt.

"I mean this is a safe neighborhood, generally," Michael Young, from Baltimore County, said. "People choose to live here because it's safe. So when you hear about something like that, it's just very concerning."

According to police, three of the suspects were minors -- two 15-year-old boys and a 14-year-old boy. They also arrested an 18-year-old man.

People, including Michael Young, who shop at the Woodbrook Shopping Center, often are stunned about the victims' ages and are concerned that young people seem to be behind a recent rise in car crimes across the state.

"(We) wanna make sure that at-risk youth are getting the support that they need, to choose different pathways," Young said.

Police found the victim's car and arrested the suspects six miles away at the Mondawmin mall.

Baltimore County is seeing a slight uptick in carjackings, like so many other communities are.

So far this year, there has been 105, compared to 92 this time last year.

We've learned Baltimore County Police is one of  few departments in the area with its own "carjacking team" made up of officers who are dedicated to investigating these types of crimes.

Meanwhile, community members tell us they are staying vigilant.

"Keys in my hand, lock the door when I get out, lock the door when I'm driving," Wilder said.

The 18-year-old has not been identified by police yet, but we've learned he is in jail tonight.

The Department of Juvenile Services told us they cannot release any details about the younger suspects in this case because they are minors.