Fall River man arrested for trespassing at Atlantis Charter School while armed

At approximately 4 am this morning Uniformed Officers of the Fall River Police Department were dispatched to the Atlantis Charter School on Jefferson Street in response to a reported Armed Trespasser.

According to Detective John Robinson, the Security Guard for the site reported that he was seated in his car at the rear gate when an unknown male dressed in a long black coat, pants, and armed with a long knife approached. The unknown male ran toward the guard and performed a backflip while waving the knife. The security guard, fearing for his safety, backed up towards the school building, striking a curb and damaging his vehicle in the process, but did manage to contact police. The unknown male ran off along the wood line towards the other side of the school. Searches of the school grounds and the school were performed. No one was located.

As the investigation continued, a video from the school surveillance system was obtained. A description of the suspect and a description of his actions were disseminated throughout the police station. Detective Dwaine Cabeceiras recalled an incident where a male performed backflips off the loading dock of a mill while armed with wooden swords in the same area as the Atlantis Charter School. In that incident. The suspect, upon landing on the ground, hurled rocks striking the cruiser of Lt. Gil Costa. The male ran from the area but was later apprehended by Lt. Costa. There were numerous reports associated with this individual and his obsession with martial arts.

A check of the FRPD database identified that male as Joshua Rocha of 313 Anthony Street Fall River. Special Operations Division Officers John Ruggiero, David Saraiva, and Division commander Lt. David Gouveia responded to Anthony Street to speak with Rocha. On arrival, they were allowed in by Rocha where they observed him wearing similar clothing to that depicted in the school surveillance video. Due to other people being present, they were led to Rocha’s’ room where they observed a knife similar to the one in the school surveillance video. Rocha admitted to being in the area with the knife because he used to run in the area before the school was built and needed the knife to cut through vegetation. Rocha stated there was one unoccupied vehicle there. When asked about the jacket, Rocha pointed to a jacket hanging on the door. It was similar to the one in the school surveillance video.

Rocha was placed under arrest on charges of Assault by Means of a Dangerous Weapon, Disturbing the Peace While Armed, and Trespassing.

He was scheduled to be arraigned today.