An Arizona man is accused of breaking into St. Patrick Cathedral School and causing an estimated $31,000 in damages at the more than 100-year-old Catholic school near Downtown El Paso, a prosecutor said.
El Paso police arrested Angel Abel Limones, of Yuma, Arizona, on a charge of burglary of a building causing felony criminal mischief, an El Paso County jail log showed.
Limones was found inside the school on Monday, Oct. 5, when the principal arrived and was conducting a walk-through inspection of the campus, 1111 N. Stanton St. next to St. Patrick Cathedral, Assistant District Attorney Dana Irwin Carmona said at a teleconference bond hearing on Wednesday, Oct. 7.
The
principal saw a broken window and that the lights were turned on throughout the school, Carmona said, citing police documents.
The principal was joined by a teacher and as they were walking around they heard a commotion coming from the computer lab on the second floor, where they found Limones shirtless and sitting on a chair, Carmona said.
The principal and teacher immediately exited the building and called 911. El Paso police arrived to find Limones standing outside the computer room and arrested him, Carmona said.
Limones allegedly told officers that he entered the school through a window, claiming people with guns were chasing him, Carmona said, though damage was found to the ceiling in the school library and police suspect he entered through the roof.
At Wednesday's hearing, Magistrate Judge Ruben Nuñez ordered Limones undergo a mental health evaluation and kept in place a bond set at $15,000, citing the suspect's lack of community ties to El Paso.
Limones remains incarcerated at the El Paso County Jail in Downtown.
Anyone with information on burglaries and any other criminal activity may anonymously call Crime Stoppers of El Paso at 915-566-8477 (TIPS) or leave a tip online at cselpaso.org.
Daniel Borunda may be reached at dborunda@elpasotimes.com and @BorundaDaniel on X.
This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Man accused of breaking into St. Patrick school, causing $31K in damage
