Teen accused in DeWitt burglary spree, stolen Kia, police chase

Broken glass and empty cash drawers greeted DeWitt merchants after police say a 15-year-old Syracuse teen and other suspects hit a string of storefronts before dawn, stole a Kia Sportage and led officers on a chase across the east side.

DeWitt police said the first burglary call came in around 3:45 a.m. June 29, after alarms sounded at Wings Over Syracuse, 315 Nottingham Road, and Skytop Liquors, 608 Nottingham Road. A DeWitt sergeant then saw a suspicious vehicle with its lights off outside Carvel DeWitt and Mario & Salvo’s Pizza at 4322 E. Genesee St.

Police said someone was seen holding a cash register in the parking lot before jumping into the vehicle and fleeing eastbound on East Genesee Street to I-481 north. The pursuit continued onto I-690 west, where officers backed off because of the vehicle’s speed. Later, police found the car crashed and unoccupied near Midler and Burnet avenues after it had driven over a median and into bushes.

With help from Syracuse police, Manlius police and the Onondaga County Sheriff’s Office, officers later located one suspect in the woods behind 2500 Burnet Ave. Authorities said the burglary spree involved a series of stores, smashed windows at four businesses and cash registers taken from three.

For small businesses, the immediate loss was not just the stolen property. Holly Cartini, who runs Carvel with her family, said the shop had no money in the register to take and planned to reopen that same day. Even when thefts are interrupted quickly, owners still face the cost of replacing broken glass, damaged equipment, lost inventory and the sales that disappear when a shop cannot open on time.

The case also lands against a wider pattern already familiar to law enforcement in Onondaga County. In December 2025, the Sheriff’s Office said eight juveniles ages 15 to 17 were identified in a nine-business smash-and-grab spree in Clay and Salina, with damages estimated at $18,000 to $20,000. Deputies said at the time that the teens may have been responsible for 20 to 30 burglaries and stolen-car cases across the county, including in Syracuse, Camillus, DeWitt and North Syracuse.

That backdrop is part of why local business owners are watching the damage closely. In DeWitt, the work now shifts to repairs, inventory checks and police follow-up while the cost of the burglary spree moves from shattered storefronts to the people and insurers who have to make the businesses whole again.