Man charged with assault accused of throwing frying pan and spatula at neighbor

Bethany Freudenthal | Las Cruces Sun-News

LAS CRUCES - A Las Cruces man has been charged with aggravated assault after allegedly breaking into his father's home and throwing a frying pan and spatula at a neighbor who confronted him about the alleged break-in.

Joel Arredondo Jr., 25, is also charged with one count of breaking and entering, and is initially being held without bond at the Doña Ana County Detention Center. Both charges are felonies.

Arredondo was taken into custody Monday, Nov. 25, in the 800 block of Motel Boulevard. He denied being at the crime scene in the 3000 block of El Camino Real.

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According to court documents, Ernestina Hernandez was outside Monday when her neighbor's two daughters ran up to her yelling for help because someone was allegedly breaking into their home.

The owner of the home is identified in court records as the father of both Arredondo and the two girls.

As Hernandez called 911, she reports that she saw the bottom half of a person walking back and forth inside her neighbor's home, so she yelled at the person to leave.

Arredondo then allegedly emerged with a frying pan and spatula in his hands.

Court documents state Hernandez and Arredondo began yelling at each other before he allegedly threw the frying pan and spatula at the woman, who was able to step out of the way before the cooking utensils hit her.

When a deputy arrived on the scene, he found the house had a broken window, and saw the frying pan and spatula on the ground.

During an interview with deputies at the Motel location, Arredondo said he'd been hanging out with friends that day and had not gone to his father's house.

Court documents state that when deputies made contact with Arredondo, his father yelled at him.

Both Hernandez and Arredondo admitted to deputies that they have had verbal altercations in the past.

Bethany Freudenthal can be reached at bfreudenthal@lcsun-news.com, 575-541-5449 or @bethanyfreuden1 on Twitter.

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