BY MIKE CETERA
Christopher Salinas just may have snapped captivity from the jaws of freedom.
Police have arrested the 23-year-old Aurora man twice recently on charges he stole copper pipe. The latest charges -- felony burglary, theft and criminal damage to property -- came Monday after prosecutors said Salinas was seen carrying a bag of copper pipes at 2:30 a.m. Nov. 2 in the 100 block of Indian Avenue in Aurora.
Prior to these incidents, Salinas was best known for beating a double-murder charge.
Why would Salinas -- who has not been convicted -- allegedly do this? Aurora police have seen an uptick in thefts of metal, which then are sold to scrap yards. The problem has become big enough that aldermen earlier this year passed an ordinance
putting new reporting mandates on local scrap yards. So, if the charges prove true, it would stand to reason he's looking for money.
But that doesn't really answer the question of why. Why would someone who -- frankly because he had quality legal representation -- was found not guilty of shooting two men to death even though he admitted to being present during the crime, throw away this second chance?
It's perplexing -- again, if the allegations prove true -- that he didn't see this freedom as a gift and an opportunity to make good with his life.
When someone beats a double murder rap, it makes the authorities look RERAL BAD. I don't know what really happened but a jury will evaluate the evidence. To be arrested twice so soon after a jury quickly decided the authorities didn't have a case is a bit suspicious.
It says he had quality legal representation, maybe that's why he's stealing, to pay off his attorney's fees!! But, that still doesn't make it right!