Aug. 16—ROCHESTER — Four teenage boys were arrested after law enforcement surrounded a Rochester home on Aug. 14, 2023, because police saw two of them handling firearms on Snapchat, according to documents filed in Olmsted County District Court.
Two of the boys, both 16, were charged with possessing a firearm under the age of 18, a felony. Two other boys, both 15, were arrested for obstruction of the legal process. Whether the younger pair has been charged with a crime is unknown, juvenile records in Minnesota are not public information except felony charges for juveniles 16 and older.
The Post Bulletin is not naming the teenagers charged due to their age. Both of the teens charged with a crime are currently incarcerated in the Anoke County Juvenile Detention Center. The younger pair were cited and released to their parents.
The older pair is alleged to have an arrest warrant and probation apprehension order issued for them, according to Crime Prevention & Communications Coordinator Amanda Grayson. She declined to disclose what the detention documents were related to, citing a Minnesota Statute which bars the public release of certain juvenile court records.
One of the boys was charged with the same offense in March.
According to court documents:
A RPD investigator using a law enforcement-created Snapchat account, saw the older pair had posted pictures holding a handgun and a shotgun the morning of Aug. 14.
Law enforcement has had previous contacts with the juveniles, though those records are not public.
RPD was able to confirm the residence where the pictures were taken because they had been called to the house earlier that morning regarding the assault of a juvenile at a party.
While waiting to execute a search warrant on the residence, RPD arrested one of the juveniles during a traffic stop. He cooperated with police and told them who was in the residence and eventually said there might be a handgun inside.
Officers then set a perimeter around the house and allowed other family members to exit. The juveniles inside the residence initially declined to exit the house, with one allegedly trying to jump out of a window. The four juveniles eventually exited the home and were taken into custody without incident.
A search of the house did not result in officers finding the firearms until one of the boys told police where the shotgun was after an officer told him to take ownership of what was going on.
Police found a Winchester shotgun and a 9mm 3D printed handgun in the residence that matched the weapons seen on the Snapchat pictures.