Police have arrested a Skowhegan teen for a series of car break-ins that is thought to have been inspired by viral online videos, the Waterville Morning Sentinel reported.
Fairfield police arrested Janathian M. Viles, 19, of Waterville, on Tuesday on three counts of aggravated criminal mischief, three counts of burglary of a motor vehicle and one count of receiving stolen property, according to the Sentinel.
Viles told police that he and a 15-year-old suspect, who was arrested in January, broke into one car using tips they found in online videos on stealing Kia and Hyundai vehicles, the newspaper reported, citing an affidavit from Skowhegan Police Detective Sgt. Kelly Hooper.
The trick related to a vulnerability in the key fob, according to several sources, for which the car manufacturers issued a security fix last year.
In one of the incidents described in court documents cited by the Sentinel police received reports of a Hyundai stolen from Indian Ridge Apartments in Skowhegan and reports of a Hyundai and a Kia parked at a residence on Big Bird Street was believed to have been broken into.
Viles allegedly admitted to driving the Hyundai, which was found “torn apart” but said the 15-year-old stole it.
Viles, whose prior criminal record includes a charge of terrorizing for a threat that closed Skowhegan schools in March 2023, is being held at the Somerset County Jail on $1,000 cash bail. The 15-year-old is being held at the Long Creek Youth Development Center.