Teens accused of Antonio Del Buono break-in; Vandalism prompts
possible additional video cameras on GUSD campuses
Gilroy – Additional security cameras may be added to Gilroy Unified School District campuses following a rash of vandalism incidents this summer, school officials said Tuesday.
Antonio Del Buono School was hit particularly hard, with two separate break-ins resulting in fire extinguishers being set off inside the office, restrooms and hallways.
Four of the six suspects arrested for the Aug. 4 school attack appeared in Santa Clara County Superior Court in San Martin Tuesday afternoon.
Jacob Cortes, 18, of Morgan Hill, Christian Javier, 18, David Sanchez, 18, and Jorden Matthew Newton, 19, all of Gilroy, waived their right to a speedy preliminary hearing.
A 15-year-old female and 17-year-old male were also arrested and released to parents.
Court records indicate Newton is linked to a previous break-in at Del Buono on March 26.
“We’re going to prosecute to the extent that the law will allow and we’re going to seek restitution,” said GUSD Assistant Superintendent of Administrative Services Steve Brinkman.
The District’s Master Facilities Plan is up for review later this month and additional security cameras are on the list of possible inclusions, he said.
“We’re going to consider adding security cameras,” he said. “I suspect that they will be added in a number of places.”
According to Brinkman, some form of vandalism happens on a weekly basis at GUSD campuses and security cameras may be a method of holding individuals accountable for their actions.
South Valley Middle School is the latest school to get cameras and they have already helped school administrators determine who started a recent school fight, Brinkman said. The school received the cameras a few weeks ago.
In court, Newton sat apart from Cortes, Sanchez and Javier, who sat together in a row with their family members wearing black slacks and button down collared shirts with neckties.
The four reunited to face Superior Court Judge Kenneth Shapero who ordered them back to court Dec. 15.
According to court documents, a digital camera containing photographs of the four suspects inside the school was found inside the suspect’s car, as well as a fire extinguisher from the school.
Review of an audiotape recorded while the suspects were in custody showed Newton admitting to a prior act of vandalism, which police linked to a March 26 incident at Del Buono.
Newton is heard admitting to making entry through a roof access and vandalizing the interior of the school.
Shoes worn by all four suspects were submitted as evidence, as well as photographs of footprints on the rooftop and in the bathroom.
“I noticed that all six individuals had a white residue on their clothing consistent with that of fire extinguisher substance,” one officer wrote in a police report.
According to Brinkman, the female juvenile is a Gilroy student. School officials are frustrated because the two juveniles cannot be linked to the crime.
“They can’t place them on the campus. And they’re not talking,” he said.
