2 teens arrested, gun recovered after Decatur domestic call

DECATUR, Ill. (WAND) — Two teenagers were arrested after a domestic disturbance in Decatur early Sunday morning.

The Decatur Police Department said officers responded to a home in the 1200 block of North Church Street just after 4 a.m. for a domestic violence call.

According to the department, officers were told while en route that an argument had broken out between a 19-year-old man and his girlfriend, and when family members tried to intervene, the man pulled out a gun.

Officers found the man outside and started ordering him to the ground to arrest him, when a 14-year-old boy with a backpack started running from the house. Officers ran after the boy, with DPD saying police are "well aware that weapons, drugs and other contraband can be passed between people."

Police chased the 14-year-old toward the 200 block of West Grand Avenue, where they lost sight of him. Officers then used a K9 to track the boy, who was found on the front porch of a home in the 1300 block of North Union Street without the backpack.

A short time later, a K9 located the backpack in a nearby alley. Police found a semi-automatic pistol with a defaced serial number inside the bag.

The police department said after investigation, officers determined that the 19-year-old man handed the gun in the backpack off to the 14-year-old boy when they heard police sirens.

The 19-year-old was booked into the Macon County Jail on charges of aggravated unlawful use of a weapon with no FOID card and being in possession of a firearm with a defaced serial number. He was released with a notice to appear. Police also said there is a pending charge of unlawful delivery of a firearm to a minor.

The 14-year-old was taken to the police department, where officers said he threatened to kill the officers who arrested him and their families. The boy was taken to the Peoria County Juvenile Detention Center, with pending charges of aggravated unlawful use of a weapon in a public place, possession of a firearm with a defaced serial number, obstructing a peace officer, and threatening a public official.