A 12-year-old reported missing in Turlock was found with two teenagers in a stolen vehicle in Ripon on Saturday.

The Ripon Police Department arrested two 16-year-old boys and returned the 12-year-old to her family.

The arrest came about through the use of an Automated License Plate Reader camera that alerted law enforcement to the stolen vehicle. An ALPR uses high-speed computer-controlled cameras to capture license plate numbers that come into view. It can provide time, location and sometimes photos that law enforcement have access to see.

It was this sort of data the Ripon Police Department received and which sent them out to the 1500 block of W. Colony Road looking for a stolen vehicle. Officers located the vehicle pulling out of a parking lot of a local business and attempted to make a traffic stop.

The driver of the vehicle, a 16-year-old boy from Modesto, refused to stop the vehicle and led officers on a short pursuit.

The driver did eventually pull over and the officers conducted a high-risk stop and took the three occupants into custody.

The driver was arrested for possession of a stolen vehicle and evading a police officer. He was transported to the San Joaquin County Juvenile Hall. 

The rear passenger, a 16-year-old boy from Modesto, was taken into custody on an outstanding warrant. He was transported to the Stanislaus County Juvenile Hall. 

The front passenger, identified as a 12-year-old girl from Turlock, was determined to be a missing person. She was transported to the police department and later turned over to a parent.