LAS VEGAS, N.M. – A New Mexico middle school principal is facing charges after police said he threatened his brother with a baseball bat during a drunken brawl.
Las Vegas Middle School Principal Thomas Sanchez was arrested Monday a day after his alleged altercation with his brother, the Santa Fe New Mexican reports.
According to police, an intoxicated Sanchez, 39, showed up to his brother’s house in Las Vegas, New Mexico, and threatened him with a bat. An affidavit also said Sanchez used the bat to damage one of the side mirrors on his brother’s Chevrolet pickup.
West Las Vegas Public Schools Superintendent Christopher Gutierrez said in an email that Sanchez has been placed on administrative leave with pay, pending an investigation.
Gutierrez said the West Las Vegas school district hired Sanchez as an elementary school principal before the 2017-2018 school year.
According to the Las Vegas Optic newspaper, Sanchez headed Union Street Elementary School when it was recognized in 2017 as a National Title I Distinguished School.
The school had been lauded for its performance in reading.
