17-Year-old Arrested for Assaulting a Drugstore Worker

“A 17-year-old boy who lives in a Redding group home was arrested Wednesday on suspicion of assaulting a worker at the Rite Aid on Eureka Way after trying to steal two bottles of alcohol, Redding Police reported this morning.

The teen, who is not being identified due to his age, was booked into Shasta County Juvenile Hall.

Police said the boy attempted to leave the Rite Aid with two bottles of alcohol around 9:20 p.m., when employee, Blake Erickson, 23, confronted him.

The teen hit Erickson in the head multiple times with the bottles, knocking him to the ground, before running away, police said.

A search of the surrounding neighborhood, which included the help of a California Highway Patrol helicopter, failed to find the teen.

But workers from the Redding group home later contacted police to say they believed the boy, who had returned there, may have been involved in the incident.

They also said he had caused a disturbance at the group home earlier that day, damaging property and assaulting staff before he took off.

Police said video surveillance taken from Rite Aid showed that the teen was the same boy who had assaulted Erickson, who was treated for his injuries at Mercy Medical Center .

The boy, who was placed in the Redding group home by Alameda County Juvenile Probation, was arrested on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon, robbery and violating probation.”

Teen arrested for assaulting store worker [Record Searchlight 9/15/16]

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