A 30-year-old Eau Claire man faces charges for burglarizing a home this past weekend and hurting the two senior citizens who live there.
Manuel I. Perez of 520 Cochrane St. was charged Monday morning with five felonies and two misdemeanors for the break-in that occurred around midnight Saturday on the city’s near-north side.
The most serious of the charges is two counts of burglary with committing battery to a person, each of which carries the potential for 15 years in prison or a $50,000 fine. Other charges are two counts of physical abuse of an elder person and one count each of battery to a law enforcement officer, resisting an officer and misdemeanor theft. A citation for excessive public intoxication was also issued against Perez.
Eau Claire County Judge Michael Schumacher set bond at $500 cash for Perez on Monday. Conditions of bond include that Perez can have no contact with his victims or their residence. His next scheduled court date is a hearing on May 24.
According to the criminal complaint:
While going to the fridge to get a glass of water, a man saw a figure whom he did not recognize inside his home. The intruder then moved toward the man, grabbing him by the arm and punching his arm. The resident asked the intruder to stop, but continued to get struck and scratched.
The intruder then went through items in the man’s room, taking some keys.
The resident retreated to the basement and called his roommate, who was also in the house, to warn him of the burglar.
The roommate missed the phone call, but had been headed toward a commotion he had heard in the house. He saw the intruder standing in the kitchen, rummaging through things and yelling about his truck keys.
The roommate moved toward the intruder, who then punched him in the face.
Retreating to another room, the roommate called 911, but the burglar followed him and hung up the phone.
Then the roommate grabbed a baseball bat, called 911 again and warned the burglar not to come near him. The intruder ignored the warning, advanced and the roommate struck him twice with the bat.
An Eau Claire police officer responding to the emergency calls of a burglary in progress approached the house and could hear shouting coming from inside it. After entering the house, the officer saw Perez standing over the roommate as the two were both holding onto a baseball bat. The officer drew his firearm, pointed it at Perez and ordered him to put his hands up. Then the officer handcuffed Perez.
Another police officer had escorted Perez to the back seat of a squad car and was preparing to read him his Miranda rights. As the officer got a card out of his pocket, Perez laid down on his back, aimed his legs and kicked the officer in the chest. Police officers then took Perez out of the squad car and used a wrap device to secure him for transport.
Perez was driven to Mayo Clinic Health System where he was vulgar and yelled at the hospital staff before he was sedated, according to police.
The two men who were attacked are both over 60 years old, which prompted the charges for elder abuse. One man suffered several lacerations to his arms and one on his head. The other man had a laceration on his head.