Teen brothers, each suspected of driving stolen Kias, are arrested by Elk Grove police

Two teenage brothers who Elk Grove police said were driving stolen white Kia sedans were arrested Saturday, one of them after a brief chase.

About 4:45 p.m., officers saw one of the cars being driven on Elk Grove Florin Road south of Brown Road, the Police Department said.

Police stopped the vehicle, which had been reported stolen, and detained the 17-year-old driver, the agency stated. The steering column of the Kia had been tampered with, officers said, allowing the car to be driven without a key.

While officers were conducting the stop of the first Kia, a second one drove by and “looked suspicious,” according to police. When officers tried to get that car to stop on suspicion of vehicle code violations, the 15-year-old driver ran a red light and led officers in a short pursuit.

Police eventually were able to detain the second driver and said they found the steering column also had been tampered with.

The two teens— who police said are brothers but otherwise were not identified as is typical in cases involving juveniles — were arrested on suspicion of driving without a license and evading police.

Vehicle theft charges are pending until investigators can contact the car owners to confirm the teens should not have been in possession of the vehicles.