A resident of eastern Greene County heard an unusual noise in his house yesterday then encountered an intruder on a stairway. The intruder was holding a piece of wood, but the resident grabbed his gun and pointed it at the intruder, called 911 and held the intruder on the stairway until a deputy arrived.

Oscar Cortez Hernandez, 35, Indianapolis, was arrested by Deputy Harvey Holt of the Greene County Sheriff's Department on Sunday, June 26.

Greene County Dispatch got a 911 call yesterday from a resident in eastern Greene County who said he had caught a Hispanic man breaking into his house and was holding him at gunpoint. He said the man was holding a piece of wood but the caller said he had a gun pointed at the man.

Deputy Holt was dispatched to the man's residence on East State Road 445, Bloomfield.

Deputy Holt reported that when he arrived on the scene he found the intruder, later identified as Oscar Cortez Hernandez, standing inside the house on a staircase landing between the first and second floors of the residence. Hernandez was handcuffed and placed in the back of Deputy Holt’s patrol vehicle.

When Deputy Holt talked to the resident, the man said he owned the house and was downstairs when he heard his dog making noise outside and heard what he thought was maybe a bird upstairs in his house. Then he thought he heard someone going through some boxes upstairs.

The resident explained that as he was going up the stairs to the second floor, he found Hernandez standing at the top of the staircase holding a large piece of wood as if he was going to hit the resident. The resident said he grabbed his gun and held Hernandez at gunpoint until Deputy Holt arrived.

During the investigation, Deputy Holt learned Hernandez made entry into the house by using a ladder from the garage area and placing it against a second floor back door that had been locked with a hasp and a bolt. The homeowner said some of his belongings upstairs had been gone through but nothing was missing.

When Deputy Holt attempted to talk to Hernandez, he requested a lawyer but did say he was driving a red Dodge rental car and that it had been stolen from him. He also said his family was taken at gunpoint in a separate vehicle.

When Deputy Holt talked to Hernandez's wife, she allegedly asked if her husband was under the influence of anything and said he hadn't been acting right. She said he left that morning in a rental car and she confirmed that he did own a backpack but she did not see him leave with it.

An Enterprise rental vehicle, a 2021 Dodge Charger, was located east of the residence parked down a dead end driveway. Enterprise confirmed the vehicle had been rented to Hernandez.

A vehicle inventory was completed by GCSD Sergeant Jordan Allor who reported finding a loaded SCCY CPX-2 9 millimeter handgun along with a glass smoking pipe inside a backpack that was in the passenger compartment, easily reachable by the driver of the vehicle. Sergeant Allor also located paperwork belonging to Hernandez. The residue inside the pipe field tested positive for methamphetamine.

Hernandez was booked into the Greene County Jail at 1:06 PM yesterday. He was being held without bond pending court appearance.

A criminal case was filed against Hernandez earlier today in Greene Circuit Court and Hernandez is scheduled to appear before Judge Eric Allen at 9:15 AM tomorrow, Tuesday, June 28, for his initial hearing when Hernandez will be formally charged with:

• Possession of methamphetamine, a Level 5 felony,

• Residential entry involving breaking and entering a dwelling, a Level 6 felony, and

• Possession of paraphernalia, a Class C misdemeanor.