A man tried to break into the Dallas Museum of Biblical Art this month, smashing several sculptures in a brazen midday attack.
Police said the man, identified as 34-year-old Elvis Santos, damaged pieces outside the museum near North Park Center, then attempted to break in around 1 p.m. Jan. 5, a Monday, when the museum was closed.
Santos was arrested and remains in the Dallas County Jail, jail records show, facing charges of felony criminal mischief and resisting arrest, a misdemeanor. Bond is set at $11,000.
A motive was not immediately clear, nor was a cost estimate for damages, although Dallas police said it exceeded $300,000. Museum officials did not respond to phone calls Friday seeking more information.
Crime in The News
Founded in 1966, the museum features rare maps and manuscripts, oil paintings, contemporary works and biblical archeology that seek to illuminate connections between Christian and Jewish faiths.
Galleries include the National Center for Jewish Art, Museum of Holocaust Art, European Art Treasury, a sculpture garden and a working restoration lab. Notable artists with exhibited works include Andy Warhol, Marc Chagall and Michelangelo.
In 2005, the museum was gutted by a fire caused by faulty wiring. It reopened in 2010 with expanded gallery space.
This is not the first vandalism at a Dallas museum. In 2022, a 21-year-old man broke into the city-owned Dallas Museum of Art and smashed three ancient Greek artifacts and a contemporary Native American piece.