Teens accused of armed robbery and assault on police officers during chase appear in court

Five teenagers accused of targeting four businesses in El Paso armed with pellet guns, then shooting at police during a high speed chase appeared before a judge in Alamogordo this morning.

Four juveniles appeared before District Judge Jerry Ritter. The 5th teen appeared before Judge Waylon Counts.

Edwin Rodriguez and Evelyn Brown, both 15, and her brother Antonio Brown, Isaiah Gracia and Jaquil Webb, all 14, wore jumpsuits. The boys were dressed in orange, Evelyn was dressed in blue.

The judge decided they should remain detained.

ABC-7 has chosen to identify the juveniles by name due to the seriousness of the charges against them.

During Monday’s hearing, all teens denied the charges, which legally is the equivalent of pleading “Not Guilty” in Texas.

All five are charged with Aggravated Assault on a Peace Officer with a Deadly Weapon, Possession of a Stolen Vehicle and Tampering or Destroying Evidence.

The teens, four of whom attended Irvin High School until earlier this month according to an El Paso school district spokesman, are being held at a juvenile detention facility in Gallup, New Mexico.

It’s still unclear if and when they will be extradited to El Paso.

Coming up on ABC-7 at Four, New Mexico Mobile Newsroom Rerporter Jamie Warren reports on whether the teens will be tried as adults in New Mexico.