Crime & Safety
Teen Escapees From Joplin Youth Center Are Sought
Authorities are looking for two boys who ran away Tuesday evening. Probation department's gang unit is involved in the search.
Orange County authorities were searching today for two teenagers who ran away from the Joplin Youth Center.
The 16-year-old boys—one from Santa Ana and the other from Costa Mesa—ran away while playing basketball after dinner about 6:10 p.m. Tuesday, said Robert Rangel, a spokesman for the Orange County Probation Department.
Immediately after the boys' escape, Orange County sheriff's deputies
scoured the area in the Santa Ana mountains and deployed a helicopter in hopes of quickly tracking down the pair, Rangel said.
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Police in Santa Ana and Costa Mesa have been alerted, and the Probation Department's gang unit was involved in the search for the teens.
Find out what's happening in Rancho Santa Margaritawith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Both boys are Latino, with one standing 5-foot-4 with brown hair and brown eyes, and the other, 5-foot-8 with black hair and brown eyes.
—City News Service
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