Police shot and wounded two boys suspected of stealing a car at gunpoint on Sunday night in Phoenix, sending them to the hospital in critical condition, according to authorities.

Phoenix police responded to an armed robbery call around 8:45 p.m. at an apartment complex near Northern and 31st avenues, said police spokesperson Sgt. Maggie Cox in a statement on Monday. A man reported to police two people had held him up in his apartment’s parking lot and demanded the keys to his car.

Two officers traveling north on 29th Avenue found the stolen vehicle stopped in traffic near Dunlap Avenue, Cox continued. Both officers got out of the patrol car and approached the suspects, motioning for the driver of the car to remain stopped. The driver appeared to comply at first, Cox said, and then allegedly accelerated toward the officer at the front of the car.

Both officers fired their guns, according to Cox, hitting both the driver and the passenger who were later identified as being 15 and 16 years old, respectively.

The driver of the car continued south and police officers followed toward the area of 29th and Northern avenues, where the passenger got out of the front seat. Police gave verbal commands to the driver, and when he did not comply, a K9 handler fired pepper balls into the vehicle “to ensure the vehicle was safe to approach,” Cox said. Finally, the driver got out of the car. 

The two boys were treated by Phoenix Fire Department personnel and taken to a hospital, where they remain in critical condition.

The officers who shot the teens were 24 and 25 years old and were with the department two and three years, respectively. Neither of the officers was injured, according to Cox.

A handgun was recovered from the vehicle, police said.

There have been at least 30 police shootings in Maricopa County in 2020, according to information from the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office. Phoenix police officers have shot at least 14 people this year.

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