Case over school damage is dropped

Arlington police said man tried to kick door open fearing ongoing attack

Prosecutors have dropped the criminal case against a 26-yearold man who was accused of damaging a door last year while trying to enter an Arlington middle school that had been placed on lockdown.

Alexander Sentayhu had been charged with destruction of public property after police alleged he rushed to Thomas Jefferson Middle School on June 10 and kicked a door, breaking some glass.

Officials said last year that Sentayhu, of Alexandria, mistakenly assumed the school was under attack. The incident occurred weeks after the shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Tex., that left 19 students and two teachers dead.

Court records show that Sentayhu’s case ended Feb. 16, after Arlington County prosecutors dropped the charge against him.

Arlington Commonwealth’s Attorney Parisa Dehghani-tafti (D) said that the case ended with a “deferred disposition” and that Sentayhu “was required to fulfill certain conditions to ensure accountability and rehabilitation.”

In an email Monday, Sentayhu said the case was “not only dropped … the charge is getting expunged as well.”

On June 10, Thomas Jefferson Middle School had been placed on lockdown “in the interest of public safety” because of an assault attempt at a nearby convenience store, police said at the time. Sentayhu arrived at the school around the same time to pick up students who were his relatives, police said.

“The preliminary investigation indicates the suspect received text messages from a relative inside the school stating they were in lockdown and responded believing there may possibly be an act of violence occurring inside,” Arlington County police said in a news release last year.

Finding the building locked, Sentayhu called police, told them he was armed and requested access, authorities alleged at the time. He had left the school by the time officers arrived, police said.