Published: October 24, 2009 11:03 pm      

Crockett man remains in jail on burglary charge

PALESTINE — A 20-year-old Crockett man remains in the Anderson County Jail after being arrested earlier this month for burglarizing a building in the southern part of the county.

Benito Ortiz, 20, of Crockett is being held in lieu of a $25,000 bond set by Anderson County Justice of the Peace Carl Davis on the charge of burglary of a building, according to records.

Anderson County Sheriff Greg Taylor said Ortiz was arrested by Houston County sheriff’s authorities on the night of Oct. 16, approximately 9 1/2 hours after he had allegedly broken into the Salmon Museum on U.S. 287, south of Elkhart, in Anderson County around 11 a.m. the same day.

“He (Ortiz) kicked the door in and entered the building and then fled when the alarm went off,” Taylor said.

The sheriff said deputies combed the area for several hours, but were unable to locate the suspect.

Around 8:30 p.m. the same day, Taylor said Houston County sheriff’s deputies arrested Ortiz walking on U.S. 287 in Houston County.

“They took him into custody,” the sheriff stated. “They knew we had been searching for him.”

The suspect “confessed” to Houston County officers, Taylor added.

Ortiz initially was transported and booked into the Houston County Jail in Crockett before being picked up and brought to Anderson County this past Wednesday.

Ronnie Foster is investigating the case.

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Paul Stone may be contacted via e-mail at pstone@palestineherald.com