A pair of Plain City juveniles has been charged with obstruction of justice after allegedly running from police.
Plain City Police Chief Dale McKee said that at about 3:55 p.m. Tuesday, police received a call from a resident in the 200 block of North Chillicothe Street. He said an old barn behind his home had been broken into. An officer went to the scene to investigate. As the officer was returning to his car, he saw two teens walking on West First Avenue.
“The two guys matched the description of two of the individuals from the caller,” McKee said. “He went to question them and they took off running.”
The chief said the officer along with deputies from the Union County Sheriff’s Office chased the two boys before eventually catching them behind the former Plain City Elementary School, which now serves as the Daily Needs Assistance building on West Main Street. McKee said the chase “only lasted a couple minutes.”
Eventually police found the third individual allegedly involved in the break-in.
“No charges were filed for breaking into the barn because the building owner didn’t want to file charges because it’s an old barn,” McKee said.
The chief added, “I don’t think they wanted to steal anything. I think they probably wanted to see what was in that old barn. I don’t really know what they were thinking.”
He said there is a chance the boys thought the barn was abandoned.
“It wasn’t. The owner used it. He lives in front of it. But it doesn’t matter. It wasn’t theirs,” McKee said.
McKee said the two boys that ran from the officer — a 15-year-old and a 16-year-old — were charged with obstruction of justice “for running.”
“Basically they were charged to teach them not to run from police,” McKee said.
The third teenager, 16, was not charged.