Vandals shot out the windows out more than 130 vehicles in Cedar Rapids over the weekend using a B.B. or pellet gun. Jason Houghtaling says the rear window of his family’s van was shattered and now instead of taking a vacation, they’ll have to use the money they’d saved to replace the glass.
Houghtailing says, "If you want to find a random way to blow off some steam, doing damage to other people’s property is not the way to do it." Cedar Rapids police say they can’t remember the last time this much destruction happened in one evening. Ben Bowers had the windows of his pickup truck shot out.
Bowers says: "They’re not taking into consideration people’s finances or anything like that. They’re just trying to pass time by and doing it in stupid ways." Repairing a broken car window can cost anywhere from $200 all the way up to more than $1,000.
Darlys Dickman says she can’t understand why someone would do such a damaging thing in her neighborhood. Dickman says: "Maybe it’s just frustration because so many people are out of work. It’s a sad way to take it out on other people." Police say the vandals targeted all four of the city’s quadrants. Houghtaling hopes police are able to find the vandals.
He says, "Somebody’s responsible for all this and they need to catch them and prosecute them." Even though no one seems to have heard any glass shatter, people in the community will be listening closely for any clues about who’s responsible. If you have any information about these crimes, call the Cedar Rapids Police Department at (319) 286-5378.