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Odessa man arrested after reports he threatened to shoot children and employees at daycare

YMCA employees said that when the man was told the daycare was open, he replied "good, I'm going to shoot you."
Credit: Odessa Police Department

ODESSA, Texas — An Odessa man is now in jail after allegedly threatening to shoot children and caretakers Wednesday morning at the Odessa YMCA daycare.

Staff at the YMCA told police that the man shown above, Raul Sanchez Jr., asked workers at the front desk about the status of his account with the YMCA. After employees told him that his account wasn't active anymore, he became upset and aggressive towards the staff.

The workers said that Sanchez then left the YMCA saying "y'all be careful" and later called back twice, yelling at employees. 

According to one worker who was on the phone with Sanchez at the time, he asked if the daycare in the facility was open. When the employee said that it was, Sanchez replied "good, I'm going to shoot you."

Later on Wednesday morning a call was made to police about a man passed out behind the wheel of his SUV at the intersection of Dixie Blvd. and 38th St.

The officer found Sanchez in the vehicle, asleep, and it began to roll forward while still in drive after Sanchez was removed. The officer then entered to stop the SUV and noticed marijuana residue inside.

After the officer woke Sanchez up, he was lethargic and spoke with slurred speech. He was arrested under a misdemeanor driving while intoxicated charge and a third degree felony terroristic threat charge.

When asked about what took place at the YMCA, Sanchez stated that he was "just trying to play basketball," and said that he had been singing lyrics from a rap song rather than making any threats.

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