The aftermath of a felony traffic stop on northbound I-395 near Pentagon City last night.
The Arlington County Police Department says that officers used spikes, known as Stop Sticks, to blow out the tires on a stolen vehicle that was spotted by an automated license plate reader. Two suspects each under the age of 18 were subsequently apprehended.
“At approximately 9:43 p.m. on November 16, police received a License Plate Reader hit for a stolen vehicle,” an ACPD crime report said. “An officer located the vehicle traveling northbound on I-395 and activated his emergency equipment as an additional officer successfully deployed stop sticks.”
“The vehicle came to a stop and the two juvenile occupants were taken into custody without incident,” the crime report continues. “The driver was charged with unauthorized use of a vehicle. Charges for the passenger are pending.”
Arlington is in the midst of a wave of vehicle-related crime, including break-ins, thefts and even carjackings.
Last night’s police action on the highway blocked a number of northbound lanes for more than an hour, leading to backups, as seen in the video below.
An @ArlingtonVaPD traffic stop with people detained on I-395N at Pentagon City has slowed traffic for the last 40 minutes. One lane currently gets by to the left. @WTOPtraffic @ARLnowDOTcom pic.twitter.com/t6oyNqut1R
— Dave Statter (@STATter911) November 17, 2020