VALDOSTA – Valdosta police apprehended three juveniles who burglarized Habibi Vape Shop, recovering over $1,500 in stolen property.

Release:

On February 28, 2026, at 1:10 A.M., officers with the Valdosta Police Department responded to an alarm at the Habibi Vape Shop, 2912 North Ashley Street. When the first officer arrived at the business, they found the front window was shattered, and it appeared that someone had entered the building. As officers checked the building, other officers began to patrol the area to look for possible suspects.
An officer patrolling the area of University Drive immediately observed a male subject running after seeing the officer’s patrol vehicle. The officer pursued the 16-year-old male, who was apprehended by a Lowndes County K9 Unit after he attempted to hide under a house. When he was apprehended, the juvenile dropped several vapes, which were determined to have been taken from the store.
After officers arrested the 16-year-old, a citizen called E911, stating that three people were acting suspiciously around a residence, not far from where the first juvenile was arrested. When the officers approached the residence, the three subjects ran away from them. Officers found two of the subjects, both 13-year-old juvenile males, hiding in a utility closet of a residence. They were taken into custody without any further incident.
Through investigation, officers positively identified the three juveniles who were taken into custody as the subjects seen burglarizing the store on the business’s surveillance video. Officers recovered over $1,500 worth of property that was returned to the store.
All three juveniles were placed under arrest for burglary in the first degree (felony), criminal damage to property (felony), obstruction of an officer (misdemeanor), and unruly juvenile-curfew violation (misdemeanor). The Department of Juvenile Justice authorized all three juveniles to be detained in a Regional Youth Detention Center. The juveniles were transported to Lowndes County Jail to be transported to the RYDC.
The case is still under investigation as officers are attempting to identify the fourth person involved.