NORMAL - Normal police arrested four teenagers late Monday morning shortly after intruders broke into a house on Normal's east side and held a teenage girl at knifepoint as they stole electronics, jewelry and guns, said Normal Police Sgt. Dan Kelley.

The 17-year-old girl, who was in the home in the 1700 block of Hoover Drive at the time of the break-in, used a phone to call a relative for help.

Police said the relative rushed home and had a gun pointed at her as the intruders fled. The relative called police on her way to the home but apparently got there just before officers arrived.

Kelley credited the rapid arrest at 11:20 a.m. Monday to an alert motorist who called police about a suspicious car on Hoover Drive.

A Normal detective spotted the car a block south of the Normal Police Department in the vicinity of Chiddix Junior High School.

The four suspects were arrested after driving down a dead-end street trying to elude police. Police also found a stolen gun tossed from the car in the area.

Four males, ages 16, 17, 17 and 19, were taken into custody, Kelley said.

At least three intruders were inside the house on Hoover Drive, Kelley said. The intruders wore masks and gloves. Some of the stolen guns were dropped as they fled the house.

The teenage girl told police she was held at knifepoint for half an hour, but police said it may have been considerably shorter.

The suspects were scheduled to appear in court Tuesday and were being held in the McLean County jail.