Man with meth and meat cleaver damaged church, threatened security guard
PORTLAND, OR Jan 12 2018
A man found carrying methamphetamine and a meat cleaver was arrested after damaging a downtown Portland church and threatening a security guard, according to court documents.
Officers responded to the St. Stephens Episcopal Parish on Sunday.
A security guard called 911 to report finding a man armed with a knife in the church after the church had been closed and locked for the night, according to a probable cause affidavit.
The affidavit states the suspect chased and threatened the security guard with a meat cleaver.
Officers at the scene took Andre Coleman, 37, into custody.
Investigators located damage inside the church, as well as a hatchet, a cleaver and two large kitchen knives the suspect is believed to have used to cause the damage, according to court documents.
Coleman told police he broke into the church and caused damage while trying to find his girlfriend who he claimed had been kidnapped a week earlier, according to a probable cause affidavit, and he didn’t care if he went to jail because he was trying to find her.
The affidavit states Coleman was carrying a baggie with a substance that tested positive for meth.
Coleman was arrested on charges of burglary, unlawful use of a weapon, criminal mischief and unlawful possession of methamphetamine.
KPTV
