Advertisement

Vandals spray-paint 31 cars and set another on fire

Share

Police are looking for vandals responsible spray-painting 31 cars and setting another on fire in Costa Mesa.

Firefighters and police responded to reports of a vehicle fire at 4 a.m. Sunday at a home in the 3400 block of Venetian Drive.

The car’s owner was inside his house when he heard his car alarm. He looked outside and saw his car engulfed in flames, according to a Police Department news release Monday.

Advertisement

Firefighters extinguished the blaze, but the car was destroyed. The vandals also wrote “ha ha” in black spray paint on the outside of the victim’s garage, the release stated.

During the same period, five cars parked along nearby Begonia Avenue and 26 cars parked outside the Cape Apartments complex on South Coast Drive were vandalized with black spray paint.

Despite the spray-painted message, the case is not considered a hate crime, nor is it believed to be gang-related, according to police.

The City Council recently voted to include graffiti vandalism as one of the numerous crimes eligible for up to $1,000 in reward money provided that the information leads to the arrest of those involved.

Anyone with information is encouraged to contact Costa Mesa police Sgt. Stephanie Selinski at (714) 754-4933.

— Hannah Fry

@HannahFryTCN

Advertisement