A multi-agency effort in central Mississippi led to the arrest of three individuals and the rescue of two children after multiple stolen vehicles were located by authorities.
Richland Police Chief Nick McLendon reports that officers on Tuesday were able to apprehend 18-year-old Zikavian Robinson and two unidentified juveniles for the vehicle theft and kidnapping of the children.
While searching for a stolen car that contained two small, kidnapped children, police encountered a second stolen vehicle on Highway 49 North.
Around the same time, deputies with the Rankin County Sheriff’s Office located the initial stolen vehicle that had been abandoned on the highway. The two children were found unharmed inside of the car.
Officers pursued the second stolen vehicle through Richland and into Jackson. The suspect crashed on Highway 80 near Gallatin St.
Three males fled on foot. Two of the suspects are accused of being armed with handguns at the time.
Within minutes of the crash, all three suspects were taken into custody and transported back to the Richland Police Department for booking.
A search of the stolen vehicle revealed a fully automatic rifle on the passenger’s seat along with narcotics. Through further investigations, officers were able to confirm the car and its occupants were involved in the prior initial motor vehicle theft and kidnapping in Mendenhall.
Robinson and the other two subjects face multiple felonies with additional charges pending in other jurisdictions.
McClendon credits the Rankin County Sheriff’s Office, Mississippi Highway Patrol, Capitol Police, Jackson Police, Pearl Police, and Flowood Police Departments for assisting Richland police in capturing the three violent criminals and “ending their reign of terror” in Simpson, Rankin, and Lincoln counties.
