Four boys have been charged after an alleged police pursuit across the South East on Tuesday (30 April).
Knox CIU detectives charged three with car theft. They were bailed to appear before a children’s court at a later date.
A fourth boy was to be later summonsed, police say.
Further charges were to be laid in relation to the driving offences.
Two 13-year-olds from Noble Park, a 14-year-old Doveton boy and a 15-year-old Springvale boy were arrested after an allegedly stolen red Isuzu D-Max ute struck two rounds of police stop sticks and crashed at slow speed into a tree on Springvale Road, Glen Waverley, police say.
The ute had been spotted by police in Box Hill and followed on the Monash Freeway by units including the Air Wing.
A first round of stop sticks were deployed on Monash Freeway in Glen Iris just before 2am.
A police pursuit was initiated, with a second round of stop sticks, before the ute crashed.
The Springvale boy was bitten by a police dog while allegedly resisting arrest. He was taken to hospital with minor injuries, police say.
The ute was reportedly stolen from a Coldstream address on Thursday or Friday the week before.
The arrests were part of Operation Trinity, which rosters 70 extra police at night.
As a result, police say they have made more than 1,400 arrests relating to burglaries and car thefts – with the overwhelming majority of these offenders’ children.
A further 2300 night shift arrests have also been made for other criminal offending.
