Waukesha teenager taken down after allegedly stealing from vehicles

Published on: 10/16/2015

A Waukesha teenager on the loose after allegedly stealing items from vehicles had to be forced to the ground after he repeatedly ignored commands and screamed profanities at police officers on Saturday, Oct. 3.

Two days later, Alexander Damas, 17 — who already had an active warrant out for his arrest after failing to appear at the juvenile detention facility where he was to begin serving a six-day sentence on Oct. 2 — was charged with a slew of offenses related to the Oct. 3 incident.

These included one count of burglary of a building or dwelling (a felony), three counts of misdemeanor theft, and counts of resisting an officer and disorderly conduct.

If convicted of all the charges, Damas, 719 E. Main St., could face nearly 16 years in prison and up to $66,000 in fines.

According to the criminal complaint, a caller said a male was going through his brother's Mercedes that was parked in the driveway at 527 E. Newhall Ave., just south of Catholic Memorial High School and St. Mary Catholic Church.

When the caller approached Damas and asked him what he was doing, Damas said, "Don't worry about it," according to the complaint.

The caller chased Damas before ultimately losing him down Hartwell Avenue. Two vehicles inside the garage had also been entered, and Damas was in possession of keys from both vehicles, the complaint noted.

The caller said Damas was carrying a camouflage backpack and wearing baggie pants and a red hooded sweatshirt. It appears Damas stole that backpack from a residence earlier in the night, the complaint said.

Another incident

A nearby resident at 1155 Downing Drive, less than a mile south of the home on Newhall Avenue, said his garage was also entered and many items were stolen that night.

He told officers that after seeing the dome light on in his car, he found a "complete mess" inside his vehicle.

The man said a charger for a GoPro, a white cord, many coins, a GPS and a multiport cigarette lighter were all stolen.

The man's son said in the complaint his camouflage backpack, which included Beats By Dr. Dre headphones as well as multiple GoPros, were also missing from the back seat of the car. Cologne, about $15-$20 and a checkbook were among other items also stolen.

Ignoring commands

After officers located Damas, he initially lied about his identity to officers, the complaint said. According to the complaint, he repeatedly refused officers' request to show his hands and kept reaching for items under his body, causing the officers concern that he might be hiding a weapon.

After Damas screamed multiple profanities at the officers and specifically refusing to do what he was told, officers delivered knee strikes to Damas and deployed a Taser on him twice, the complaint noted.

Damas posted a $5,000 cash bond on Oct. 8, online court records indicate.

A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Thursday, Oct. 15, at the Waukesha County Courthouse before Court Commissioner Thomas Pieper. Court records show Damas pleaded not guilty at that hearing.