Transient arrested in Jurupa Valley church vandalism investigation
JURUPA VALLEY, Calif. — Authorities say a transient who was captured on surveillance cameras vandalizing a Jurupa Valley church on Thursday, May 6, was arrested less than a week later, after officials who reviewed the surveillance camera footage recognized him from prior contacts.
The man now stands accused of breaking three “treasured, century-old stained-glass windows” as well as shattering a stone statue outside the Sacred Heart Catholic Church. He is also suspected of breaking about a dozen other windows throughout the church, including windows in the church’s religious education office, several classrooms, and a bathroom.
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Father Andres Garcia Chavez has since said the lone vandal, who didn’t steal anything, was captured on surveillance cameras as he “bashed in” the three stained glass windows. He was also seen on video using a fire extinguisher to break into pieces a stone statue depicting a kneeling San Juan Diego, the first person indigenous to the Americas to be canonized by the Catholic church as a saint.
The fire extinguisher was later found nearby.
Recognized on surveillance footage that captured last week’s church vandalism, Michael Dudek was arrested after he was found in an abandoned Jurupa Valley home. RSO photo
After learning of the vandalism, deputies assigned to the Jurupa Valley Sheriff’s Station Problem Oriented Policing Team (POP) assumed the investigation, Riverside Sheriff’s Sergeant Armendariz said after the suspect’s arrest.
“A citizen within the Jurupa Valley community provided video surveillance, which captured images of the suspect in the commission of this crime,” Armendariz explained. “Based on the surveillance video, deputies recognized the suspect from past contacts to be Michael Dudek, a male adult, 30 years of age, and a transient of Jurupa Valley.”
As their investigation continued, on May 12, POP deputies located Dudek in an abandoned Jurupa Valley residence on Belgrave Street where he was arrested.
Dudek was later booked into the Robert Presley Detention Center in Riverside on suspicion of felony vandalism.
Online jail records indicate he was subsequently released the following morning, with a citation to appear at the Riverside Hall Of Justice on July 14.
Anyone with further information about this investigation is encouraged to call Deputies Gonzalez and/or Fisk at the Jurupa Valley Station at (951) 955-2600. Callers can refer to incident file number JV211260193 and can remain anonymous.
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Trevor Montgomery, 49, moved in 2017 to the Intermountain area of Shasta County from Riverside County and runs Riverside County News Source (RCNS) and Shasta County News Source (SCNS).
Additionally, he writes or has written for several other news organizations; including Riverside County-based newspapers Valley News, Valley Chronicle, Anza Valley Outlook, and Hemet & San Jacinto Chronicle; the Bonsall/Fallbrook Village News in San Diego County; and Mountain Echo in Shasta County. He is also a regular contributor to Thin Blue Line TV and Law Enforcement News Network and has had his stories featured on news stations throughout the Southern California and North State regions.
Trevor spent 10 years in the U.S. Army as an Orthopedic Specialist before joining the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department in 1998. He was medically retired after losing his leg, breaking his back, and suffering both spinal cord and brain injuries in an off-duty accident. (Click here to see segment of Discovery Channel documentary of Trevor’s accident.)
During his time with the sheriff’s department, Trevor worked at several different stations; including Robert Presley Detention Center, Southwest Station in Temecula, Hemet/Valle Vista Station, Ben Clark Public Safety Training Center, and Lake Elsinore Station; along with other locations.
Trevor’s assignments included Corrections, Patrol, DUI Enforcement, Boat and Personal Water-Craft based Lake Patrol, Off-Road Vehicle Enforcement, Problem Oriented Policing Team, and Personnel/Background Investigations. He finished his career while working as a Sex Crimes and Child Abuse Investigator and was a court-designated expert in child abuse and child sex-related crimes.
Trevor has been married for more than 30 years and was a foster parent to more than 60 children over 13 years. He is now an adoptive parent and his “fluid family” includes 13 children and 18 grandchildren.