CRANSTON -- The police are investigating a vandalism spree in which someone wielding a pocket knife flattened tires on 23 vehicles between 12 a.m. and 7 a.m. Wednesday.
"We're going to direct our patrols to these particular neighborhoods to make sure this action isn't repeated," said Maj. Robert W. Ryan. The vehicles were parked in residential driveways mostly in the Eden Park and Auburn neighborhoods.
The crimes were discovered at about 7 a.m., Ryan said Thursday.
"When they go out and get ready to go to work, that's when they make the discovery," he related. In a few cases, investigating officers were the ones who notified the victims.
"It was a rude awakening for some people," Ryan said.
In each tire there was a small puncture in the sidewall about 1 inch in width, suggesting the use of a pocket knife, according to Ryan.
"We don't have any witnesses," he said. "We don't have any suspects as yet."
"Our detective division is working with our school resource officers and our Bureau of Criminal Identification to evaluate evidence in the case," Ryan said, although he acknowledged that the police at this point do not have any physical evidence other than the tires themselves. Officers are canvassing the neighborhoods to see if any residents have recorded security video.
West of Pontiac Avenue, the streets hit were: Keith Avenue, 2 vehicles; Myrtle Avenue, 3; Norman Avenue, 7; Summer Avenue, 1; Davis Avenue, 3.
East of Pontiac Avenue, they were: Woburn Street, 4; Malden Street, 2; Milford Street, which passes over Route 95, 1.
At several locations, more than one vehicle was damaged.
The police suspect that a young person did it.
"This is the type of senseless crime that would be perpetrated by someone in that age group, a senseless prank, senseless vandalism and destruction," Ryan said. "We're hoping that some information can be gleaned from inside our schools."
Ryan asked for vigilance: If someone spots something suspicious, such as a person pausing in a driveway at 2 a.m., that someone should call the police.
"They're our ears and our eyes," he said of the public.