Deputies: Gang members, high on pot, fall asleep at crime scene

Deputies say two teenage gang members smoked enough marijuana Friday morning to pass out in their getaway vehicle while it was still parked in the same Winton neighborhood they’d just finished burglarizing.

The two boys also were found with a stolen handgun, Undersheriff Jason Goins said.

A Merced deputy spotted a blue SUV about 12:30 a.m. near Irvine Drive and Berkeley Avenue in Winton. Investigators said several houses are under construction in the area and the neighborhood has reported numerous thefts from those sites in recent weeks.

Two 17-year-old boys were found “passed out” inside the SUV and “there was a strong odor of marijuana coming from the vehicle,” Goins said.

The deputy saw a large amount of copper wire, boxes of nails and other construction equipment in the SUV, authorities said.

“It was determined these items were stolen from the construction sites,” Goins said.

Deputies also found a loaded .22 Ruger semiautomatic handgun inside the SUV. The gun had been reported stolen in Tulare in March, according to investigators.

Both boys were arrested on suspicion of participation in a criminal street gang, theft, possession of stolen property and having a loaded firearm in the vehicle, deputies said.

The teens were released to the custody of their parents.

This story was originally published August 12, 2016 at 3:34 PM with the headline "Deputies: Gang members, high on pot, fall asleep at crime scene."