A Lynnfield resident’s brand-new Mercedes was stolen outside her home and crashed in Saugus on Tuesday.
According to a Facebook post made by Kelly Mertens, the car’s owner, two juveniles were placed into custody and guns and ammunition were found in the car. She said she had bought the new Mercedes less than a day before it was stolen.
Mertens said that her husband, who is an overnight nurse, usually comes home at 7:45 a.m. to take their kids to school. Seeing that the new car was nowhere to be found, he called Mertens to ask where she was.
“He’s like, ‘Where’s your new car?’’’ Mertens said. “And I said, ‘What are you talking about?’ I thought he was joking. He’s like, ‘Your new car is not here.’”
Mertens said that she checked a Mercedes app on her phone to locate her car, and saw it was in Melrose. She said that she then called 911, prompting the Lynnfield Police Department to come to her home and communicate with other departments to track the car.
“On Route 1, we saw that they stopped and went to Wendy’s,” Mertens said. “And then we saw they had been at one spot for about five minutes, which ended up being the YMCA where they had, at a high rate of speed, crashed into a tree.”
According to the Massachusetts State Police, at around 8:12 a.m., the Saugus Police Department issued a BOLO (be on the lookout) for a vehicle reported to be stolen.
“Troopers located that vehicle on Route 1 South and attempted to stop it,” State Trooper Brandon Doherty said. “The vehicle fled and troopers did not pursue. Minutes later, that vehicle crashed near the Saugus YMCA and two people in the vehicle fled the scene on foot. Shortly thereafter, Saugus PD was able to place two people into custody.”
Mertens said that she left her purse with her keys in the car the night before it was stolen, but did not think much of it as her small street “doesn’t really scream ‘high crime.’” She also said that the “false perception of safety” was the most unsettling aspect to her as a Lynnfield resident.
“I grew up in Lynnfield,” Mertens said. “Everyone says, ‘This stuff doesn’t happen.’ Of course it does.”
Mertens also said that police showed up to her house to ask about the ammunition found in the car. She said it did not belong to her and gave officials permission to investigate the car further.
She also said that the Mercedes app showed that the suspects drove about 100 miles. Mertens said they left bags of snacks in the car, which she saw when she went to the car to try and retrieve her purse and wallet, which she said were also stolen.
Mertens said she intends to press charges.
Kelan Flynn contributed to this report.
