El Paso grand jury indicts man for terroristic threat after judge declined charge

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) -- Days after an El Paso magistrate judge declined to charge a man accused of carrying a gun towards a crowd outside a Cincinnati Entertainment District bar, a grand jury indicted him on two counts of terroristic threat related to the incident.

Andres Gabriel Lodoza, 22, had been arrested Saturday after officers and agents from several different law enforcement agencies saw him walking towards a crowd near the Cincinnati Entertainment District by UTEP with a rifle. Read about the arrest here.

Magistrate judge Sara Priddy declined to press terroristic threat charges against Lodoza, according to police. ABC-7 looked into what it takes to be charged with terroristic threat.

El Paso police announced Wednesday night, investigators took their case against Lodoza to the District Attorney's Office. Police said in a news release the case they presented was for a felony terroristic threat, which is a third-degree felony.

The District Attorney's Office then presented the case to a Grand Jury, which indicted Lodoza. The 120th Judicial District Court issued two arrest warrants for Lodoza Wednesday with a total bond $55,000.

Lodozawas booked into the El Paso County jail.

A conviction on a third-degree felony in Texas carries between 2 and 10 years in jail.