A second teenager has been arrested in the carjacking of a mother late Sunday night that led police on a meandering pursuit through neighborhoods in Prince George's County and the District, authorities said yesterday.
The teenager, identified only as a 14-year-old, was apprehended in Prince George's County and charged with stealing the blue 1999 Acura RL from the 1100 block of Balboa Avenue in Capitol Heights shortly before 8 p.m. He was charged as a juvenile with the unauthorized use of a vehicle, reckless endangerment and second-degree assault.
Cpl. Diane Richardson, a Prince George's police spokeswoman, said the teenager also is accused of handing the car off to an 18-year-old man, who picked up three girls and drove them around the communities along the border of the county and city.
The vehicle was later spotted by authorities, and the driver led officers on a half-hour pursuit through the two jurisdictions before crashing in the 400 block of Burbank Street SE.
A D.C. police spokesman identified the driver as Reynaldo Perkins of Southeast Washington, and said he was charged with the unauthorized use of a vehicle, fleeing and alluding police officers, receiving stolen property, reckless driving and leaving the scene of a collision.
The girls, who were not identified and who were said to be about 14 years old, were not charged.
Richardson said the 14-year-old boy knocked the 24-year-old mother to the ground, jumped into her vehicle and drove off with her 3-year-old daughter strapped in the back in a child-safety seat. The girl was later dropped off unharmed in the 4900 block of Call Place SE, less than a mile from where the car was stolen.
State's Attorney Glenn F. Ivey said yesterday that his office will wait for the investigation to conclude before deciding whether to argue in court that the 14-year-old should be charged as an adult.
Carjackings in the county have increased more than 20 percent in Prince George's this year. Through Friday, 471 had occurred, up from 389 for the same period last year. In 2003, 423 carjackings were tallied.
