A man recently released from jail was taken into custody again after deploying a fire extinguisher inside the Christian County Jail.
Officials said Jose Antonio Rojas called Hopkinsville police on Tuesday from a US Bank stating he had been robbed at gunpoint. After reviewing surveillance video, police said they determined that he was lying.
Rojas then allegedly went to Jennie Stuart Medical Center and claimed he was robbed by different people and that they were chasing him throughout the hospital.
Police again determined that he was lying. He was arrested for disorderly conduct at around 3:50 p.m.
Rojas was released from the Christian County Jail around 10 p.m. and allegedly began running around the parking lot.
Even though he was released from jail, authorities said Rojas ran back into the jail about 10 minutes after being released.
Chief Deputy Steve Howard said he tried breaking the door knob to the administrate office using a wet floor sign but failed.
“I absolutely don’t know the reason why he would do something like that and come back to the facility. I just don’t understand it,” he said.
Surveillance video showed him grabbing the fire extinguisher and deploying it under the sprinkler system inside - spraying everywhere before eventually covering the cameras.
Police said he used the fire extinguisher to break the door knob to the administrative office – this happened during off hours and jail staff managed to take him into custody before he got any further.
“Over 20 years you think you’ve seen it all. I always tell my staff if you believe you’ve seen it all just come to work tomorrow, something new will happen," said Chief Howard.
Rojas was charged with disorderly conduct, criminal mischief and falsely reporting an incident.
As of Wednesday, he remained in jail. Bond was set at $2000 and an arraignment hearing was scheduled for Wednesday, December 13.
Howard said he is expected to take a mental evaluation. He believed that he was not under the influence.
