A 16-year-old boy is accused of stealing a car that was later involved in a drive-by shooting on Interstate 5 in November, according to court documents.

An Oak Harbor police report indicates that the boy, a Tacoma resident, was targeting Hyundai and Kia cars, a trend happening nationwide in the wake of social media posts showing people how to steal the vehicles. The Highway Loss Data Institute reports that thefts of Hyundai and Kia models have seen an astonishing tenfold increase in the last three years.

Prosecutors charged the teenager in Island County Superior Court Jan. 2 with theft of a motor vehicle, attempted theft of a motor vehicle and malicious mischief in the third degree.

On Nov. 15, a resident of Northeast Second Avenue reported to Oak Harbor police that his 2020 Hyundai Elantra was missing. The man reported that his roommate asked where his car was and the man found it was gone, with just a pile of broken glass left behind, according to a police report.

On the same day, a resident of Northeast First Avenue reported that someone tried to break into his Kia. A neighbor had seen the suspect trying to break into the car and recorded video footage of him. The suspect walked off after realizing he had been watched.

Officers were able to obtain security footage from residents that showed the suspect walking in the area and looking into cars.

The next day, a detective with the Washington State Patrol reported that the stolen car was involved in a shooting on I-5 near Smokey Point. Later, an officer found the car abandoned in the northeast area of Oak Harbor.

Police identified the suspect as a teenager who has been staying with his uncle at a home on Northeast Third Avenue, according to court documents.