A 13-year-old driver in a stolen vehicle led police on a short pursuit that ended Wednesday night when the vehicle slammed into the front of the Michaels store in Santa Maria.

Officers noticed a vehicle traveling at a high rate of speed and in a reckless manner near Thornburg Street and Carmen Lane about 9:45 p.m., according to a Santa Maria Police Department news release.

When they tried to stop the vehicle, the driver failed to yield to officers and ran a red light at Carmen Lane and South Broadway.

The fast-moving vehicle traveled into the shopping center in the 1900 block of South Broadway and crashed through the front of the building before coming to a stop approximately 30 feet inside craft store.

As a result of the traffic collision, the Michaels building sustained “major structural and merchandise damage,” police said.

The driver was caught after a short pursuit on foot.

The vehicle is believed to have been stolen just before officers attempting to stop it.

The teen was booked into Santa Barbara County Juvenile Hall for suspicion of evading a police officer, reckless driving, hit and run and resisting a peace officer, police said.

Michaels was open for business Thursday as employees and contractors worked to clean up and repair the damage.

— Noozhawk North County editor Janene Scully can be reached at jscully@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.