Car lot thefts escalate to chaos

Police in Michigan said a group of more than 20 people broke into a vehicle holding lot last week, had a shootout with a security guard before making off with 13 vehicles and led officers on a lengthy high-speed chase.

One of the thieves died after crashing a 2022 Ford Mustang he had taken, according to TV station Fox 2 in Detroit, and students at Oakland University were told to shelter in place for five hours after police found another stolen vehicle abandoned on campus and assumed the suspects were still armed.

It wasn’t clear whether the lot where the vehicles were stolen was affiliated with a dealership or an auto auction. The vehicles taken were expensive, high-powered models from multiple brands.

Police recovered seven of the 13 vehicles but had located only one suspect, aside from the Mustang driver who died, ABC 12 in Flint reported. They said large-scale vehicle thefts have become increasingly common in the area, but that this was the first incident involving gunfire.

The thieves shot at the holding lot’s security guard and rammed his car in the incident, which happened around 3 a.m. Nov. 14. The guard was not injured.

“Fired shots at him, he exchanged gunfire with those suspects,” Flint Police Chief Terance Green told Fox 2. “They were able to get into vehicles and drove through the gate, damaging other vehicles on the way out and were able to get away.”