New Mexico School of the Blind and Visually Impaired vandalized after break-in

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – A specialized Albuquerque school for the blind is now left with thousands of dollars in damage after a man broke in overnight. But that’s not the only problem the suspect caused.

Story continues below

• New Mexico grandma speaks out after CYFD attempts to reunite child with parents facing abuse charges
• New Mexico School of the Blind and Visually Impaired vandalized after break-in
• Silver City High School teacher accused of having sexual relationship with student
• What’s happening around New Mexico August 23-29

Principal Paul Kilman showed where police caught a burglary suspect Thursday morning, inside the storage room of the New Mexico’s School of the Blind and Visually Impaired, off Eubank in southeast Albuquerque. “He just totally trashed everything in there. He spray-painted stuff, so we’ll have to take care of that,” said Kilman.

The break-in happened just before midnight. Police said the suspect first smashed the windows of three company vehicles. Then, he busted a window to get inside a school classroom leaving a trail of destruction. David Payne, 34, is now facing charges for the break-in.

“It’s an unknown mystery of what the purpose was expect to get into the building and rummage around,” said Kilman.

After police got on scene, officers said Payne barricaded himself in one of the storage rooms where toys and equipment were spread around and spray painted. The principal said while the roughly 7,000 dollars in property damage is a headache, the loss of time in the classroom for students is most disappointing. “These students rely on that repetitiveness. The ability to do tasks over and over and to lose those few days is really hard for the students,” said Kilman.

The school had to cancel classes Thursday and tomorrow in order to safely clean up. “He made it to all the classrooms which is what impacts all students. And so every classroom is going to have to be thoroughly cleaned and disinfected and rearranged to be prepared for the student by Monday,” said Kilman.

On Friday, staff will spend the day cleaning and reorganizing the school in hopes of preparing to welcome students back next week. The school just announced this week that it would be expanding its footprint with new buildings. They said part of that expansion will now include a review of campus security.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KRQE NEWS 13 - Breaking News, Albuquerque News, New Mexico News, Weather, and Videos.