13-year-old girl arrested for auto theft in Palm Springs

A 13-year-old girl from Cathedral City was arrested in the early morning on Tuesday in Palm Springs for stealing a vehicle from a Thousand Palms home.

At around 1:00 a.m., a Palm Springs Police Department officer saw what appeared to be a vehicle which had been reported missing after a Thousand Palms residential burglary traveling on Tahquitz Canyon Way near Avenida Caballeros.

The officer attempted to stop the vehicle, but it sped away. A short pursuit followed and ended about a mile later in the area of Tahquitz Canyon Way and El Cielo Road. The driver of the vehicle fled the vehicle on foot and was apprehended a short time later. One occupant of the vehicle also fled and was not found following a helicopter search of the area.

A second occupant of the vehicle stayed in the vehicle and was detained.

An investigation confirmed that the vehicle had been stolen in the Thousand Palms residential burglary and additional stolen property was also found in the vehicle.

The driver, a 13-year-old girl from Cathedral City, was charged with possession of a stolen vehicle, unlawful taking of a vehicle, reckless evading, and possession of a stolen vehicle, according to a Palm Springs Police