Las Cruces man accused of breaking into home, stealing two firearms
A Las Cruces man faces felony charges after police say he broke into a home and stole two firearms from a residence on Calle de Paz.
Police say surveillance video captured a suspect shattering a sliding glass door at a residence on Calle de Paz
Damien Willis, Organ Mountain News
LAS CRUCES - A Las Cruces man has been charged after police say he broke into a home and stole two firearms from a residence in the city.
According to a criminal complaint filed in Doña Ana County Magistrate Court, officers responded to a burglary report at a home on Calle de Paz on Feb. 11 between about 7 a.m. and 9 a.m.
Investigators say the suspect first attempted to kick in the front door but was unsuccessful. The suspect then went to the backyard and shattered a rear sliding glass door to enter the residence.
Police say the home had been unoccupied since the homeowner died. A family member with power of attorney had been caring for the property.
Surveillance cameras at the home captured images of a man attempting to enter through the front door before breaking the glass door in the back of the house, according to investigators.
Once inside, police say the suspect took two firearms — a Taurus .410/.45 Colt revolver rifle and another rifle of an unknown make or model.
During a follow-up investigation, an officer reviewing the surveillance footage said he recognized the suspect as Domonic Lavern Eischen.
Investigators later learned the suspect had admitted during an interview on an unrelated case that he had entered a home belonging to a deceased person. Police say the suspect was also wearing the same beanie seen in the surveillance footage from the burglary.
The stolen firearms have not been recovered, according to investigators.
Eischen, 32, was booked into the Doña Ana County Detention Center on charges of breaking and entering and aggravated residential burglary.
Under New Mexico law, burglary becomes aggravated when a person enters a structure intending to commit a crime and either carries a deadly weapon, arms themselves after entering, or commits a battery during the offense. In this case, investigators allege the suspect armed himself with firearms after entering the home.
Damien Willis is founder and editor of Organ Mountain News. If you have a personal story to share or a lead we should follow up on, reach out at OrganMountainNews@gmail.com or connect with him on X at @damienwillis.
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