Two of three suspects were arrested in connection to an act of vandalism at Annie Kellond Elementary School that included a fire on the school’s kitchen roof and dozens of windows broken throughout campus.
Joseph Cruz, 23, and Jesus Carrillo, 18, were arrested on suspicion of burglary, arson and felony criminal damage, according to the Tucson Police Department. A third person was detained, but police said charges for that person are still pending.
“As officers responded to the scene there were three individuals seen leaving the school around the time of the incident,” TPD said in an emailed statement. “All three subjects were detained and, as the investigation continued and interviews were complete, all three subjects were identified as being involved.”
The vandalism pushed Kellond Elementary administrators to cancel classes Tuesday as personnel worked to assess the damage and restore the classrooms back to safe conditions for the students.
It was the second Tucson school to fall victim to vandalism in the span of three days, following another incident that cost the Tucson Country Day Charter School thousands of dollars in damage. However, TPD said there was no indication that the two incidents were related.
“It’s extensive, the worst case of vandalism I’ve seen in a very long time. More than half of the classrooms have six broken windows, glass all over the floor, contents and things have been rifled,” said Nicole Lowery, the risk manager for the Tucson Unified School District.
“We just need to make sure that the scene is safe for students, and get everything boarded and secure so that kids can return as soon as possible,” she said.
Lowery said that, while administrators were still evaluating the cost of the damage, it was clear the vandals had made entry into various areas of campus, started a fire on the kitchen roof and broke many windows.
She said the campus, near South Wilmot Road and East Broadway, does not have security cameras, and there were still areas where school personnel had yet to enter as they were closed off for crime scene investigations.
As a school resource officer kept guard near the entrance of the school Tuesday, teachers began to arrive to help assess the damage that had been done to their classrooms and help determine whether classes would be able to resume Wednesday, Lowery said.
“I wish I could understand what a motive would be for somebody to cause such intense and disappointing damage to our campus,” she said.
