Cop accused of breaking into ADA's house

By Bill Donovan
Staff writer

GALLUP — A local police officer has been relieved of duty after an incident involving his former housemate.

Jason Dayea, 27, an officer for the Gallup Police Department, was charged with breaking and entering, a fourth-degree felony, after an assistant district attorney, Kerry Comiskey, called police and reported that Dayea was in his home without permission.

Comiskey and Dayea had shared a house at 109 E. Hill St. but Comiskey told police that he had told Dayea last week that he would have to move out and, at the same time, got Dayea's house key back.

On Sunday, Comiskey said he had returned home and after going to the bathroom, noticed Dayea standing about five feet from the door.

The two then got into a discussion about why Comiskey had not left a door unlocked so Dayea could come and retrieve his personal belongings and Comiskey, according to the police report, said it was because Dayea was no longer living there.

Comiskey said he learned during the discussion that Dayea had gotten in through a kitchen window by braking off the window latch.

"The conversation soon turned to the issue of whether I was going to return the house key to him," Comiskey said, adding that he explained to Dayea he was not getting the house key back.

Comiskey said he asked Dayea over and over again to leave, but he refused each time, saying he wanted the house key.

"During the course of the incident, Mr. Dayea made several references to the possibility of physical violence directed at my person," Comiskey said in his statement to police. "However, I did not feel that I was in danger of receiving an immediate battery."

In his statement to police, Dayea said that all he wanted to do was get his personal items out of the house and needed Comiskey to make arrangements because there was not enough room in his car to get all of his belongings in one trip.

When Comiskey refused to make arrangements and threatened to call police, Dayea agreed, thinking that with police there, he would be able to get his personal belongings back.

As for the break-in, Dayea said that when he arrived at the house and noticed that Kerry was not there, he opened the kitchen window as he had done once before when he was living there.

City Manager Eric Honeyfield, responding to questions about Dayea's status with the police department, said this was a "very serious incident" that needed to be investigated.

"If it is as it appears, serious action is pending," he said.