Suspect arrested for vandalizing Albuquerque’s Main Police Station

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – APD officers arrested a 45-year-old woman accused of vandalizing the Main Police Station downtown.

Officers in the Valley Area Command were dispatched to a vandalism call at the main station around 1 a.m. Wednesday. When they arrived, they found inappropriate words written in red spray paint all over the building’s south stairs, as well as the walls and outdoor benches and planters.

Officers quickly apprehended the suspect, later identified as Jennifer Otte.

According to the criminal complaint, Otte was the only person discovered at the scene. She told an officer she was in the area when the incident occurred, alleging a man spray-painted the messages that she stated she agreed with.

Officers reviewed the building’s surveillance video which showed Otte at the west side of the building, holding and shaking a red spray paint can. According to the video, Otte then moved to the southwest side of the building where she began tagging messages, near the sidewalk, that matched what officers found at the scene.

Otte was booked into MDC on felony criminal damage charges. It is believed she acted alone.

Crews worked to clear the graffiti Wednesday morning and had it cleaned up by 7:30 a.m.

Otte was also charged with vandalism in 2016 after allegedly damaging officer Daniel Webster’s memorial. The charges were dropped in 2017 when prosecutors could not find the main witnesses. However, prosecutors noted she had competency issues.