East Lyme — A 15-year-old boy from New Haven was arrested in Niantic early Wednesday after allegedly being caught with a credit card that was stolen — along with a vehicle — from Old Lyme two nights before.

Police officers were patrolling in East Lyme after hearing reports of vehicle break-ins in other shoreline communities when an officer spotted a person in a ski mask getting out of a vehicle at the Henny Penny in Niantic about 1:39 a.m., according to the East Lyme Police Department.

When the officer began to approach the vehicle, it sped out of the parking lot. The person who had gotten out of the car was still inside the store, police said.

The officer approached the person inside the Henny Penny, a 15-year-old boy from New Haven who was not publicly identified because of his age. The boy was in possession of a credit card that had been inside a car that was stolen Monday in Old Lyme.

The boy, who was not able to use the stolen card before the officer stopped him, was charged with credit card theft and referred to juvenile court in New Haven, police said.

The vehicle that he had gotten out of was not the one that was stolen from Old Lyme, police said. The investigation was ongoing.

Statewide and in several southeastern Connecticut towns, police say they have seen a spike in juvenile car thefts this year.

t.hartz@theday.com