ALLENTOWN, Pa. — Authorities are accusing a 33-year-old man of vandalizing the federal courthouse in Center City this week.
Deon Gardner, of Allentown, was jailed Monday night on misdemeanor charges of criminal mischief and institutional vandalism, according to court records.
A U.S. deputy marshal estimated the cost to repair the damage would “easily be over $2,000.”
Affidavit of probable cause
An Allentown police officer driving by the Edward N. Cahn Courthouse on Hamilton Street about 7 p.m. Monday saw a shattered glass door at the federal courthouse, charging documents state.
Gardner was sitting on the steps to the building, the documents state.
Gardner told the officer he broke the windows, and city surveillance cameras captured footage of him throwing rocks at the building’s front doors, according to the affidavit of probable cause filed against him.
A U.S. deputy marshal estimated the cost to repair the damage would “easily be over $2,000,” the affidavit states.
Gardner on Wednesday was in Lehigh County Jail in lieu of $10,000 bail. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Monday morning.
Federal prosecutors could also file charges against Gardner, according to the U.S. Marshals Service’s office in Philadelphia.