A Florida man may have missed breakfast Monday at the Morgan County Detention Center, but he made it back in time for lunch.
Juan Barreneche, 37, of Riviera Beach, Fla., had been arrested by Fort Morgan police around 11 p.m. Sunday for trespassing at a local hotel, first being called for a disturbance at 6:14 p.m. and a second time related to a trespass call. The charge allows for a personal recognizance bond release and by 4 a.m. he had been released from custody.
“It is always frustrating to see individuals with repeated law enforcement contact released from the detention center only to commit crimes against persons a short time later,” Police Chief Loren Sharp wrote in an email.
Barreneche was a subject of a third call in the city at about 5:45 p.m. Monday when police believe he stole a pickup truck.
“Upon investigation, Fort Morgan officers were able to determine that Barreneche had approached a male employee of the Fort Morgan Fieldhouse, asking for a ride,” Sharp said. “When the victim denied a ride, Barreneche began assaulting him and forcefully removed his keys, stealing the pickup.”
That employee is believed to have jumped into the bed of the pickup and called 911 as Barreneche sped away. The Morgan County Sheriff’s Office began a pursuit of the pickup, reaching speeds of up to 108 mph eastbound from Fort Morgan. Stop sticks were deployed to deflate the pickup’s tires somewhere between Otis and Yuma.
And back to Morgan County Barreneche went, Sharp said, this time hitching a ride with the Morgan County Sheriff’s Office.
“In this case, the suspect was released on the mandated PR bond less than two hours before carjacking an unsuspecting citizen and causing injury as he stole the vehicle,” Sharp said. “Fortunately, the victim was not seriously injured, as this could have been much worse with the driving behavior [of Barreneche] and [his] reckless disregard for the safety of others.”
Barreneche is being held without bond this time in the Morgan County Detention Center on robbery, second-degree aggravated motor vehicle theft, reckless endangerment, reckless driving, first-degree criminal trespassing and third-degree assault. It was not clear whether he was aware the vehicle’s owner was in the bed of the truck, otherwise he could have been charged with kidnapping, Sharp said.
Barreneche was booked Sunday in the Morgan County Detention Center on a police charge of second-degree trespassing with a $1,000 bond related to the hotel call.
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