Three apprehended in ‘full moon’ crime spike

Suspects in unrelated major incidents arrested and jailed Friday

By LPR Staff
Editor/POST-REGISTER

Modern lore suggests that evenings of full moons are the most active – and often the most strange – for those in the law enforcement industry. Friday night, June 26, was no exception in Lockhart. Although the party was down the road in Luling at the Waterm

elon Thump, Lockhart criminals had a heyday cut short on Friday by the Lockhart Police Department, with assistance from several citizens and good Samaritans.

The most serious of the three incidents occurred last, with an arrest of a suspect being made at 2:45 a.m., after a more than three-hour standoff with Lockhart police.

According to Lockhart PD Interim Lt. Richard Torres, the suspect, identified as Lionel Leal, 24, was involved in an altercation earlier in the evening on Hunter Road.

Torres said a victim had called the police after Leal, who later confessed, had held a gun to his head and demanded his wallet. When the victim refused, Leal stabbed him several times about the head and torso.

Leal did take the wallet, but the victim was able to escape and walk to a relative’s home, where he called authorities and was later transported to Brackenridge Hospital.

Upon making the report, the victim told police that Leal was still at his (the victim’s) home, that he was armed and had threatened to shoot anyone that approached him.

Police proceeded to the location and, after spending several hours securing the residence and trying to convince Leal to surrender, Torres said he ordered the tactical team to make entry into the residence.

Upon entering, they found that Leal had long since left the residence, but his description was circulated to patrol officers, one of whom spotted the suspect at a local convenience store.

Leal was taken into custody at that location without incident, and was found to be in possession of a loaded handgun, as well as the victim’s wallet.

Earlier in the night, a violent crime was averted when police responded to an apartment complex on a call that an intruder was in a female’s residence and attempting sexually assault her.

Torres said the suspect, a 19-year-old male, had entered the residence by “jumping through a sliding glass door,” and attempted to assault a female resident.

Torres was not specific if the would-be victim or a neighboring resident made the call, but when police arrived at the residence, the suspect was still in the home and was taken into custody.

The man was charged with Burglary of a Habitation with Intent to Commit Sexual Assault. However, Torres did not specify whether the suspect confessed after being apprehended.

Finally, a local business was a victim of vandalism, which, if not for the help of two passersby, could have been worse.

Torres said police were called just after midnight to a local auto dealership after a couple driving by had seen someone “hitting tires” in the parking lot. The pair drove around the block while on the phone with LPD dispatch, keeping an eye on the suspect, who cut as many as 18 tires on vehicles in the lot before police arrived on scene and arrested him.

Anyone concerned about crime in their area, or with information on these incidents, is encouraged to contact the Lockhart Police Department at (512) 398-4401.