BY: ABQ RAW staff
POSTED: 2/11/2024 @ 12:45PM
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Jake Towner, of Albuquerque
Albuquerque –
It can sometimes be a good thing that neighbors know their fellow neighbors name. Jake Towner however, is not in that category. Most of his neighbors hear his name and know chaos is about to unfold in their neighborhood.
APD takes Jake Towner into custody after a standoff in his truck in front of his home on January 21st, 2024.
Jake Towner has been part of the infamous NM catch and release system and he has taken full advantage of it as evidenced by his crime spree in the last few weeks. During one recent incident he fled from APD officers to the front of his house located at 5005 Mountain Ave. It lead to a SWAT standoff where he was barricaded inside his truck for hours. During that standoff which we witnessed he fell asleep half way through it. Eventually he was taken into custody by the APD SWAT team. This incident occurred on January 24th, 2024.
Before the ink even dried on his booking intake paperwork he was released back into the public. Towner remained off the police’s radar for ten days before he became a problem again. On January 31st, he went back to his home on Mountain and started throwing rocks, and trash, and then began breaking glass in the street.
One of Towners neighbors had damage to their truck after he threw rocks at it. Neighbors called APD to have him arrested. APD was able to locate him without SWAT this time and they arrested him. He was charged with criminal trespass and resisting officers during that incident.
Towner was booked and again immediately released afterward. On another incident on February 5th, at 11:46 PM, Albuquerque Fire Rescue (AFR) received a dispatch to 5005 Mountain Rd NE concerning a possible structure fire at a single-family residence. Ladder 13 (L13) quickly reached the scene in under three minutes and observed smoke emanating from Towners abandoned, boarded-up house.
The fire was swiftly brought under control within nine minutes of AFR arriving on scene. Damage to the structure was confined to the living room and garage areas of the home. Towner was not on scene but it is highly possible he was responsible for the fire.
Neighbors told us that Towner was gifted the home by his mother, and property records confirm Towner is the owner. The 5005 Mountain Ave. home is currently condemned and no one is supposed to be allowed on the property.
On February 9th, 2024, around 3:30PM, APD received a suspicious person call near the Frontier Restaurant. APD officers responded and found the person matching the description near Central Ave and Yale Blvd. It was a familiar face to police none other than Jake Towner. He now had a felony warrant out for his arrest because he has been missing hearings for his all his previous charges in January.He was once again booked for his new felony warrant, and hopefully the judicial system will hold him in custody until his trials this time.
While Towner’s crimes were being committed, on January 29th the New Mexico Legislature did declare an amazing “Zozobra Day” but the legislature has yet to pass any noticeable laws to hold violent criminals behind bars.