Police say two brothers aged 14 and 11 were taken into custody after they broke into a Florida gun shop to steal 22 guns and ammunition.
On Wednesday, the juveniles were taken into custody for multiple charges, including 22 counts of grand theft, one count each of criminal mischief and one count each of armed burglary.
The 14-year old was also charged with violating his probation. NBC News won't name the suspects, as they are minors.
These arrests are made amid nationwide debate about gun control and stricter gun laws after recent mass shootings by teenager suspects. An 18-year old man killed 13 people, 11 of them Black, in a racist attack on a Buffalo, New York grocery store. A few weeks later, an 18 year old killed 19 students, two teachers and a principal at Uvalde Elementary School in Texas.
This month, President Joe Biden pleaded for Congress to pass gun control legislation. He said that Republican opposition to gun measures was unconscionable.
Around 3:00 a.m. Wednesday, Cape Coral police received a call about a burglary at Guns 4 Less. Officers responded quickly and saw the brothers run away with "multiple handguns, ammunition and long guns", a spokesperson for Sgt. Julie Green stated.
Green stated that the juveniles fled in separate directions because of the heavy ammunition and guns they had stolen.
According to police, the 14-year old had one AR-15 pistol and threw it when he ran. Both boys were arrested.
Green stated that a preliminary investigation showed the brothers visited the store on Tuesday and were "looking around." The business owner asked them to leave when they asked.
The boys attempted to enter the business by opening the front door, but they couldn't do it. Green said that they went to the back door to open it and used tools.
Green stated that they broke into the display cases while inside and ransacked the whole business, stealing 22 guns, rifle magazines and handgun magazines as well as various ammunition calibers.
Since then, all the stolen weapons were recovered.
Green claimed that the brothers believed they had cut off the power before they entered the store. However, they "didn’t actually do it." According to Green, the owner was notified by a surveillance system and cameras within the business that captured the burglary.
Green stated that police have linked the boys to other crimes, including burglaries.
