Elkhart police Tuesday arrested a man they say was seen looking into the windows of Beardsley Elementary School. Police had to arrest him a second time when he ran from the hospital with no clothes on.
Shortly before 9 a.m. police say the 38-year-old man was seen jumping the school’s perimeter fence and coming up to the building to look into windows.
Police say when they arrived he ran and jumped into the St. Joseph River and hid under a boat. Officers hit him with pepper spray and after a struggle they got him out of the water.
Police took him to Elkhart General Hospital for evaluation but they decided to release him when doctors said they needed time to treat a pre-existing condition.
But then shortly after noon, police say the man ran from the hospital while attached to medical equipment, and at some point he shed his hospital gown. After police caught him again, fire department medics took him back to the hospital.
Police say they’ve decided to keep him in police custody at the hospital until he is well enough to be jailed. They say they won’t release his name unless or until prosecutors file charges. They’re holding him on preliminary charges of trespassing, resisting arrest and public indecency.
The school was placed on lockdown during the incident.
