Police arrest alleged car thieves after early morning search

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A State Patrol helicopter and a team of K9 officers helped Woodbury police apprehend two alleged car thieves early Thursday morning.

The men, both of South St. Paul, were found hiding in a marshy area near I-494 and Lake Road around 3 a.m. after they fled on foot from a car a Woodbury police officer on patrol recognized was stolen.

According to the Woodbury police report, the patrol spotted the vehicle along Wooddale Drive and ran its license plate number. The registration stated the vehicle was reported stolen. The officer attempted to pull the vehicle over near the parking lot of a public storage area along Lake Road and I-494 when two men in the vehicle fled the car on foot and took off into the nearby marshy area, the report stated.

The officer called for backup from Woodbury police and assistance from the State Patrol and Cottage Grove police, the report stated.

Shortly before 3 a.m. the State Patrol used its helicopter and infrared camera and located the individuals hiding in the marshy area. Cottage Grove K9 officers tracked down the suspects, who Woodbury police apprehended and transported to the Washington County Jail, while they were being held as of Friday, Woodbury Public Safety spokeswoman Kim Peterson said.

The suspects, who are both 19, were expected to be charged with several offenses in the incident, including fleeing a police officer on foot, motor vehicle theft, motor vehicle tampering and obstructing the legal process.

Tags: local news, crime and courts, car theft, news, woodbury