Two teens were arrested Thursday in connection with the break-in and vandalism of an Odessa church after being caught by police on a separate offense.
Dustin Jones, 17, and Logan Daniels, 18, were arrested by Odessa Police Department detectives who interviewed the youths at the Ector County Detention Center following their arrest Thursday on charges of evading police.
The suspects reportedly admitted to entering the Holy Redeemer Church, 2633 Conover Ave., and causing an estimated $20,000 in damages sometime between Feb. 24 and Feb. 26, authorities said.
OPD authorities said paint was used to write derogatory and hate messages on the church walls. Both Jones and Daniels face charges of criminal mischief, a state jail felony. More charges are anticipated as the investigation continues, the OPD reported.
Officers on patrol were dispatched at 2:30 p.m. Tuesday to Floyd Gwin Park in the 2000 block of West 10th Street to check out a report about teenage kids messing with playground equipment and not allowing younger children to play with it, the OPD said.
Three males and one female fled from officers the moment they arrived and ran across West County Road. A foot chase through the 1300 block of Whitaker Avenue resulted in the capture of two young men, later identified as Daniels and Jones, who reportedly admitted they knew officers were trying to detain them, the OPD said.
Officers told OPD detectives the two suspects appeared to be the subjects tied to the Holy Redeemer Church burglary. Daniels and Jones were arrested on a misdemeanor charge of evading arrest and taken to the county jail.
