WICHITA FALLS (KFDX/KJTL) — A man Wichita Falls police said has seven prior convictions for burglary of a building now has an eighth after police said he was caught with his hands almost in a safe.

Danny Almanza’s new sentence of 10 months in state jail is for a burglary t Pullin Fina at 305 N. Scott on Jan. 23, 2023.

An employee told police when he arrived at 5 a.m. to unlock the front door, he saw a man lying next to the floor safe. He said the covering over the save was removed, and the man was trying to open the safe. He said the man got up and told him he was trying to get change and quickly left.

The employee said he recognized the man as Almanza from previous contacts because he had “wild ghost eyes.” Police said entry was made by pulling a window air conditioner out.

When police located and questioned Almanza, they said he admitted entering the building, but he said he went through the unlocked door and was there to take out the trash. The employee said the door was still locked with a padlock when he arrived.

Police have investigated and arrested Almanza for numerous business burglaries in past years.

In investigations of burglaries in the Holliday Road area, they say had surveillance video placing Almanza in the area at the time of the burglaries and also recovered stolen items from the attic where he slept.

Since 2020, Almanza has been charged with 4 burglaries in May 2020, two in June 2020, and one in October 2021.

In one case, police responded to a burglary report on Windthorst Road at the City of Wichita Falls transportation maintenance site and found Almanza in a parking lot. They said he told them his whole day had gone bad, and he was walking across town looking for a cigarette.

They said he admitted being in the building and the alarm went off, so he went outside to try and talk into the speaker box to let people know the alarm was going off.

In another burglary report at a Dollar General, police said they found him behind the building with his hands in a fuse box. . Police said the store stood to lose a large amount of frozen or perishable goods due to the power being off.