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School resource officers help crack Troup County car break-in case

By and FOX 5 Atlanta Digital Team
Updated  June 4, 2025 4:28pm EDT
Troup County
FOX 5 Atlanta
Troup Co. Sheriff releases video of teens allegedly breaking into cars

Troup Co. Sheriff releases video of teens allegedly breaking into cars

The Sheriff's office released news videos of three teens charged with breaking into cars, theft and gun-related crimes. The three teens face 52 different charges.

The Brief

    • Troup County deputies ended a three-month investigation with the arrest of two 14-year-olds and a 15-year old who they’ve charged with more than 50 felonies.
    • The teens are accused of breaking into cars in Troup County and other communities in which personal property, including numerous handguns, were taken.
    • Deputies say the teens were often armed themselves and there was concern over the potential for a violent confrontation with either a homeowner or law enforcement.

TROUP COUNTY, Ga. - The Troup County Sheriff’s Office credits its school resource officers with breaking open a difficult three-month investigation that saw dozens of cars broken into. On June 2, they arrested three juveniles — the oldest was 15, and the two others were 14 years old. They are being charged with 52 juvenile felonies in Troup County.

ORIGINAL STORY: Georgia teens arrested in Troup County for 35 car break-ins

The backstory:

Troup County sheriff’s investigators say reports started coming in last March of auto break-ins of unlocked vehicles. 

The numbers ramped up in April, with some windows being smashed on cars that had been locked — a new trend in the investigation. 

Deputies say they got a break in May when Ring doorbell video captured a couple of the teens without masks. 

The sheriff’s office says the suspects looked young and sent the images to all the school resource officers in Troup County, asking for help in identifying the teens. 

During the investigation, deputies say they also finally got a good description of a vehicle the suspects had used in some of the crimes.

What they're saying:

The sheriff’s office credits the school resource officers with providing a big break in the case by identifying some of the teens they would later arrest. 

They say the vehicle connected to the crimes was also associated with one of the teens. They said the SROs are valuable tools beyond just the walls of their schools.

"They kind of pointed us in the right direction because they know their students in their schools," said Lt. Stewart Smith of the Troup County Sheriff’s Office.

What's next:

The teens have already made their first appearance in juvenile court on the current charges and the investigation continues. Hogansville has now announced that they are bringing 84 felony charges against the teens. 

The Source

  • This is a FOX 5 Atlanta original report. Our reporter spoke to the sheriff's office for this story. This story has been updated since it was originally published to include the information about the charges in Hogansville. 

Troup CountyCrime and Public SafetyNews