13-year-old boy accused of breaking into 11 homes was targeting girls, Michigan cops say
A 13-year-old boy was taken into police custody after officials say he targeted girls and broke into 11 Michigan homes.
On Feb. 5, the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office shared a news release asking the public for help identifying a suspect who was accused of breaking into homes in Pontiac.
Around 4 a.m. Feb. 4, the suspect, later identified as the 13-year-old boy, broke into a home wearing a ski mask and armed with a knife, Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard said in the news release. He went into a 10-year-old girl’s room and choked her while she was sleeping, according to Bouchard.
The boy was scared off by the girl’s screams and the girl’s mom saw him run down the stairs and out of the home, the sheriff’s office said.
“Obviously, an intruder willing to climb into a home in the middle of the night and armed with a knife and primarily in homes with young girls is a person we need to catch and take off the street,” Bouchard said.
Bouchard said the boy was getting into the homes through unlocked windows. He said detectives were investigating at least three other similar home invasions or attempted home invasions that occurred in December and January.
In a Feb. 7 update, Bouchard said the boy had been involved in breaking into 11 homes in Pontiac and Detroit and was targeting homes where girls lived.
The mother of one 15-year-old girl told WLS that the boy was in her son’s class at school. She said the boy broke into their home, forced her daughter to undress at knifepoint, then he stabbed and choked her, the news outlet reported.
“The invasion of a child’s bedroom by a threatening intruder is a profoundly disturbing experience, and this incident has understandably caused significant distress among parents of young children. It appears the suspect was targeting residences of young girls,” Bouchard said.
Bouchard said in a news conference streamed by WJBK that they tied the boy to a home invasion from two years ago and that more recent cases went back to the summer.
The boy had a knife with him in at least three attacks, Bouchard said during the news conference.
“This is, again, the worst nightmare of any parent, to have somebody try to get in the bedroom of your child” Bouchard said.
The boy’s parents have been cooperative with authorities, Bouchard said.
Prosecutors will determine what the boy will be charged with.
This story was originally published February 9, 2025 at 1:14 PM with the headline "13-year-old boy accused of breaking into 11 homes was targeting girls, Michigan cops say."
