A 31-year-old Rio Rancho man faces felony charges after allegedly attacking his mother with a metal pipe and damaging a pastor’s vehicle during a domestic dispute Monday, according to court documents filed in Bernalillo Magistrate Court.
The man was charged with aggravated assault against a household member with a deadly weapon and criminal damage to property over $1,000, according to a criminal complaint.
Rio Rancho police responded to a domestic dispute at an address on Twisted Juniper Road Southeast around 11:44 a.m. on Nov. 10, according to a statement of probable cause.
Officers learned the suspect had not slept for several days and was acting unusual, the document states. The victim told police she suspected her son was under the influence of drugs, according to the statement.
The victim reported her son armed himself with a metal pipe and started yelling at her, telling his mother he didn’t believe she was his real mother, police said. The victim stated she was scared and feared her son was going to use the pipe to batter her, according to court documents.
The criminal complaint said the suspect “did assault or strike at” his mother with the metal pipe.
The victim said her son went to the backyard armed with the pipe, where he struck a 2004 silver Dodge pickup truck, damaging it with the pipe, the statement says. The victim reported calling the police and the suspect stopped damaging the truck and went to the front yard.
Officers spoke with the suspect in the front yard, who reported he damaged the truck with the pipe because he was angry “at the church,” according to the probable cause statement. He did not make statements regarding assaulting his mother, police said.
The damaged truck was owned by the family’s pastor. Officers observed the truck and estimated the damage at over $1,000, according to the statement.
