SAN ANTONIO – Two men found on the rooftop of a former supermarket on the North side will likely face charges of attempted burglary.
A ladder truck from the San Antonio Fire Department helped police get their hands on one suspect, while the other either jumped or fell from the roof.
Sgt. Richard Fischer said officers responded to a call around 4 a.m. for a ringing alarm at the vacant building on Huebner Road near NW Military. He said they found evidence indicating that someone had accessed the roof, then climbed up the same way.
"When those two people saw the officers approaching them, they started to run and flee, " Fischer said. "One man either misjudged that it was the edge of the building, or slipped and fell, or tried to jump off the building ."
The suspect landed feet-first, shattering bones in his legs and possibly causing internal injuries, Fischer said.
Officers had to use a fire department ladder truck to gain access to the section of the roof where the second suspect was hiding. Police escorted him down the ladder and placed him into handcuffs.
"If you've never been on one of those ladders, it can make anybody feel unsteady," said Fischer, about the somewhat shaky descent.
A spokeswoman for HEB confirmed that the company was the last tenant to occupy that building. Dya Campos said an HEB supermarket that was at that location shut down in 2008 when the company opened its Alon Market nearby.
Signs bearing the name, HEB, are still on the front doors, and the supermarket's trailers are parked at the loading dock behind the building. However, Campos said the company no longer uses the space, although it still leases the property.
Campos said it appears the suspects were caught before they ever gained entry to the building.
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