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Published on 06/08/1998 All articles from this issue

Repeated acts of 'unusual' vandalism have damaged facilities at Oak School

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By Linda Taaffe / Town Crier Staff Writer

The baseball fields at Oak School were the latest targets May 30 in a recent string of vandalism at the school over the past four months.

According to police, someone broke off sprinkler heads and flooded the fields and smeared oil-based paint "all over the bleachers."

School members say during the past two months someone has attempted arson, sabotaged the electricity, spread paint on the bleachers and dugouts and poured paint into equipment storage sheds, broken sprinkler heads and flooded fields with water.

On two separate incidents in March, someone spray painted and set fire to school posters and outdoor display cases used to post upcoming events. A window in the computer lab was damaged the following month, according to a police report.

Police and school officials describe the string of events as "unusual."

John Love, a 20-year Los Altos resident and president of Los Altos Pony Baseball, a league that uses the fields after school, said he was "disgusted" by the vandalism.

"I've never seen anything comparable to this, ever," Love said.

Love said the impact on the league has been "minimal, only because of the help of so many volunteers. We have had an incredible amount of support from parents and kids in dealing with various clean up and repairs."

He said field repairs have cost "hundreds of dollars" in out-of-pocket expenses, have required hours of work from dozens of volunteers, and have forced the baseball league to relocate two games to other fields.

Los Altos police officer Mark Macaulay said the police department had sent "several pieces of evidence to the crime lab" and was waiting for the results. Macaulay said police don't know if the March incidents are related to the most recent vandalism.

Based on witnesses and evidence from the crime, police are looking for one individual, most likely a tall adult male with easy access to hand tools, paints and household chemicals. The person is probably familiar with building structures and is likely to be "handy around the house." The person probably walks to the school site and is often alone from between 8 p.m. on Friday nights to 6 a.m. Saturday mornings.

Los Altos Pony Baseball is offering a cash reward of $250 for the arrest of the vandal.

If you have any information, call officer Johnny Slater at the Los Altos Police Department, 948-8223, Case No. 9801108.