Police ID Suspect After Sacred Heart of Jesus Statue Destroyed in St. Patrick Cathedral

After beheading statues, beheading humans is the next step. When will our leaders wake up? We are in the early stages of a full blown revolution!

From the El Paso Times

El Paso police Wednesday identified the man accused of destroying the Sacred Heart of Jesus statue inside St. Patrick Cathedral.

Isaiah Cantrell, 30, of the 3600 block of Fort Boulevard, was arrested Tuesday in the vandalism.

Cantrell was charged with criminal mischief and possession of marijuana. He was booked into the El Paso County Jail in Downtown on bonds totaling $20,500. Jail records show he still was being held Wednesday afternoon.

The Catholic Diocese of El Paso said the statue was destroyed around 10 a.m. Tuesday when a man entered the sanctuary at the cathedral and destroyed the almost 90-year-old statue. It was on display behind the main altar of the church.

The church was open at the time for prayer.

The El Paso Police Department is investigating.

The rector of St. Patrick Cathedral, the Rev. Trini Fuentes, said in a statement Tuesday: “I am in shock and we at the cathedral are heartbroken over such an unexpected situation.”

Bishop Mark J. Seitz also expressed his sadness about the vandalism.

“This statue is one of my favorite representations of Jesus — his arms open wide in welcome, his heart aflame with love for us. I would often take inspiration from this image as I prepared for Mass,” Seitz said in a statement.

“As sad as I am to see a statue attacked and destroyed, I am grateful that it was not a living person,” the bishop added. “But a statue, particularly this statue, concretizes and connects us to persons and ideals that are not visible to our eyes. They reveal to us realities that are close to us, but unseen.”

The bishop said he would pray for the vandal.

“At this point we do not know anything about the person who carried out this assault, but he certainly must be a person who is greatly disturbed to have attacked this peaceful place in our city and this image of the King of Peace. I hope this might be the impetus for him to receive the help he needs. He will be in my prayers,” Seitz said.

Jail records indicate the suspect has a criminal record dating back to at least 2010 for charges including possession of marijuana, possession of drug paraphernalia and driving while intoxicated.

Jail records show Cantrell was arrested Sept. 4 by University of Texas at El Paso police and charged with assault on a peace officer, criminal trespassing and resisting arrest, search or transportation. He was released that same day on surety bonds totaling $5,000.

Record show he also was arrested Sept. 6 by El Paso police and charged with failure to identify, possession of marijuana and resisting arrest, search or transportation. He was released Sept. 8 on bonds totaling $1,792.

Churches in El Paso last year saw a rash of vandalism.

In September 2019, the FBI offered rewards totaling $15,000 for information leading to the arrest of whoever was responsible for three arson cases at El Paso Catholic churches that summer.

Rewards of up to $5,000 were offered in the three separate arson cases.

St. Matthew Catholic Church, St. Patrick Cathedral and St. Jude Catholic Church sustained damage from incendiary devices on May 7, May 13 and June 15, respectively. No one was injured.

Despite the destruction, the diocese will continue to make churches available for prayer, a spokesperson said.

Fernando Ceniceros, spokesperson for the diocese, said the bishop believes it is important to keep the churches accessible to people.

"We are still leaving the parishes open for prayer," he said. "We believe the opportunity for people to have prayer, especially in our sanctuaries, is essential to who we are as Catholics."

Ceniceros said each parish has some form of security, whether it's surveillance systems or someone watching the doors.

The Texas chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, a chapter of the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, Wednesday released a statement in solidarity with the diocese.

"As American Muslims, we are saddened whenever a house of worship is targeted by hate or violence," Executive Director Faizan Syed said. "Today, we stand in solidarity, the Christian community and with our brothers and sisters in the El Paso Diocese who are going through this tragedy. Our community knows the hurt and pain caused when our houses of worship are vandalized. You’re in our prayers and thoughts.”