Five members of the West Caldwell High School wrestling team were arrested and charged with a pair of misdemeanor offenses for their involvement in an incident that took place at Hibriten High School during the annual Jamie Tuttle Invitational wrestling tournament.

West Caldwell Principal Doug Rhoney and Athletic Director Danny Anderson said the individuals have been removed from the wrestling team and also received suspensions from school for their involvement.

"We have apologized for those actions; that's not what we expect out of student-athletes at our school," Anderson said. "Kids make mistakes, but there has to be some kind of punishment for those mistakes. That is not behavior that represents our school well, and we apologize."

Rhoney agreed.

"We want to reiterate that is not the way West Caldwell wants to be represented, and I think they understand that," said Rhoney, who also personally made contact with the schools involved. "That's not the image we want any organization from this school to portray. This sends a clear message to our community, students and parents that this administration, athletic director and coaches will not support that kind of behavior."

Anderson indicated that West Caldwell had sent letters of apology to the schools involved as well as Hibriten as the host of the tournament.

The five suspects were arrested and charged with misdemeanor larceny and possession of stolen property. They were released to the custody of their parents.

Arrested in the incident were 18-year-old Jonathan Devon Stiles of Lenoir, 16-year-old Dace Ben Adams of Lenoir, 16-year-old Randall Travis Lowman of Lenoir, and a pair of 15-year-old juveniles.

Stiles, Adams and Lowman are scheduled to appear in Caldwell County District Court Feb. 11, 2010, while the 15-year-olds will be petitioned in juvenile court.

According to reports from Lenoir Police Department, the individuals were involved with the theft of some personal belongings involving wrestlers from Carteret and Rowan counties. The reports indicate that officials with the school systems taking part in the tournament told LPD Officer Brett Ingram that items belonging to wrestlers had been taken from the buses.

West Caldwell wrestling coach Arex Crooke later approached Ingram with information about who may be responsible for the missing items. LPD Capt. Scott Brown said Ingram made contact with the suspects. They were cooperative and admitted to taking the property from the buses. They also helped Ingram recover the property, which included cell phone chargers, MP3 players, sunglasses, caps and sweatshirts.

"If it had not been for his cooperation, we might not have solved the case," Brown said of Crooke. "He was very cooperative and helpful."