Teen caused $30K in damage falling through Richland office ceiling, say police

An 18-year-old allegedly caused $30,000 in damage as he fell through the ceiling of a Richland office building late last week.

Christian A. Hernandez Amaya, of Pasco, was wanted for skipping a court hearing in Franklin County when he set in motion a standoff and search that shut down a building in a Richland business park.

The nearly two-hour long search in the complex at the corner of George Washington Way and Comstock Drive ended when Hernandez Amaya came crashing into a server room. On the way, he allegedly broke lights and dislodged vents.

Now, he’s being charged with first-degree malicious mischief, resisting arrest and violating a protection order in Benton County Superior Court. He’s being held in the Benton County jail in lieu of $75,000 bail.

This is only the latest time in the past year that Hernandez Amaya has been in trouble with the police.

The gang member had been given a 30-day sentence as a juvenile for second-degree robbery in October, according to court records. As a condition, he was ordered not to associate with gangs. The same day as his release, he made a social media post where he used a gang sign and posted a reference to his gang affiliation.

He is facing a hearing to revoke his probation.

Then in January, he allegedly threatened his ex-girlfriend with a knife to try and stop her from leaving him. He was charged with unlawful imprisonment and released after someone paid his $15,000 bond.

He was expected back in court on March 3, but failed to show up, and an arrest warrant with no bail set was issued.

Richland business park

Richland police were called in to help arrest Hernandez Amaya for the warrant about noon on March 4. When they arrived at the business park, located at 303 Bradley Boulevard, they found Hernandez Amaya and his former girlfriend outside.

He had already been ordered to stay away from the woman because of the pending court case.

The two went inside, but the woman soon came back outside to talk with police, court documents said.

Police surrounded the building and evacuated people from inside, court documents said. As they ordered Hernandez Amaya to leave the building, he refused.

Instead, Hernandez Amaya crawled into the ceiling. He allegedly broke through in several areas and dropped ceiling materials into workspaces, computers and servers. He finally came crashing down into a server room where he was arrested, court documents said.

He was arrested and booked into the Benton County jail.

Ex-girlfriend at knife point

Hernandez Amaya had been released in early February after allegedly holding his now ex-girlfriend at knife point to try and get her to stay with him.

The woman, who was five-months pregnant at the time, told police that he tried to physically stop her when she was trying to leave after discovering that he had been unfaithful.

He allegedly grabbed her and she pulled away. Then he got a knife from the kitchen and threatened her, court documents said. She “threw herself into him” and her leg was cut.

She didn’t feel free to leave until he handed the knife to his mother, court documents said.

Robbery

The earliest case happened in January 2025 when Hernandez Amaya and his girlfriend conspired to rob a man at Heritage Park.

The man had arranged to meet the woman to get food when the woman, Hernandez Amaya and a third man approached the car. They dragged the man out, punched him and then drove off in his car.

Hernandez Amaya and his girlfriend pleaded guilty to second-degree robbery.

Hernandez Amaya was given a chance to serve a 30-day sentence and 50 weeks of community service work as part of the plea agreement. He was supposed to stay away from gang involvement and participate in program to help improve his social skills.

According to a motion to change his sentence, he allegedly failed to complete both of those requirements.