The boy was remanded in custody after appearing in the Dunedin Youth Court yesterday.
He was arrested after an early morning ram-raid on South Dunedin's DTR store.
It is understood the boy was on bail at the time of the incident.
A police spokeswoman said officers were alerted to the break-in about 4am yesterday.
''It appears a vehicle had been used to ram the doors,'' she said.
''A lawnmower and a guitar had been taken and possibly discarded.
''The vehicle has fled the scene just after 4am, and police have followed. They have stopped following the vehicle in the Pine Hill area.
''The vehicle was abandoned in Forrester Ave and police dogs tracked a person of interest to a nearby address, where they were taken into custody.''
Acting Senior Sergeant Trevor Thomson said the youth was found hiding at the address.
He fled from a stolen Nissan Primera after leading police on a brief car chase through the central city.
Police were investigating other matters as a result of his arrest.
''He's helping us with other inquiries around town,'' Acting Snr Sgt Thomson said.
The car used in the ram-raid was stolen from a North Dunedin address on Tuesday night.
Police had ruled out the possibility that the boy was linked to a spate of thefts of '90s-model Nissans in the city over recent weeks, Acting Snr Sgt Thomson said.
Inquiries into the raid were ongoing and included a possible second person of interest.
DTR head of marketing Mike Frederickson said the King Edward St store reopened late yesterday morning.
''It's a frustrating incident,'' he said.
''$1000 worth of product - barely, but $10,000 worth of damage.''
The boy was remanded into the custody of the Ministry for Vulnerable Children, Oranga Tamariki, and will reappear in the youth court next month.
