Girls cause $100K of damage after breaking into elementary schools, Texas officials say

A group of girls ranging in age from 12 to 15 was arrested after they broke into two elementary schools, starting a fire in one of them, Texas officials say.

The four girls are accused of breaking into Glen Gove and Pebble Hills elementary schools, two El Paso schools located within two miles of one another, according to a police news release. Two of the girls are 12 years old and the others are 13 and 15, police said.

They caused around $100,000 in damage from the Jan. 30 break-ins and were arrested on burglary charges, police said. Police detained the four girls and they were turned over to the juvenile probation department.

The El Paso Fire Department said three of the girls were given arson charges after investigators determined the trio intentionally started a fire at Pebble Hills. One of the girls also is accused of pulling the fire alarm at Glen Cove.

“A video circulating on social media appeared to show people running out of a school as a fire alarm rang in the background during a break-in at night,” the El Paso Times reported.

All four girls are students in the Ysleta Independent School District, according to KFOX.

“The prosecutor’s office will likely seek restitution payments from the perpetrator,” a school district spokesperson told KFOX.

This story was originally published February 9, 2022 at 9:37 AM with the headline "Girls cause $100K of damage after breaking into elementary schools, Texas officials say."