BELFAST, Maine — Police are working to ascertain the identity of three men they believe are responsible for a vandalism spree sometime late Tuesday night or early Wednesday morning.
At the City Park, a bottle was broken in the pool, Bryan Cunningham, Belfast police detective said Wednesday. The lifeguard stand was thrown into the deep end of the pool, as were a cinder block and a steel grate that were in the area. Benches in the pool area were upturned as well, police say.
The pool is outside, surrounded by a fence.
The damage also includes a broken window in an outbuilding on Bridge Street and broken windows at MacLeod’s Furniture and the Belfast Dance Studio on High Street. The men apparently also are responsible for tearing flowers from window boxes on High Street storefronts and tipping over city trash containers, police said.
Cunningham believes one of the suspects is at least 21, since officers have an image of him from a security camera purchasing alcohol. A still image obtained by police from a local store, which police would not name, shows a man wearing long blue shorts, a green hooded sweatshirt with four large letters on the front and lettering on the back and a green hat, also with lettering. The man also had rings inserted into his ear lobes.
Jim Bell, the city’s parks and recreation department director, said Wednesday that the pool is expected to be closed at least through the weekend. Bell contacted the National Aquatic Foundation and learned that the best way to ensure the safety of swimmers is to drain the pool and power wash the bottom before reopening.
Police estimate the costs of the damage to be several thousand dollars.
Police ask that anyone with information about the identity of the suspects call them at 338-5255.
That bottle of booze in his left hand may have influenced his decision making process! At least it wasn’t coffee brandy
Unfortunately, that bottle is what ended up at the bottom of the Park pool!
What senseless crime. How can people just not care and do things like this? I will never understand. Glad you got a pic of one. Round them up and 100 lashes for all.
” The man also had rings inserted into his ear lobes.” In 2012 we call those “ear piercings”.
Either way, it’s time to grow up boys – destroying property doesn’t impress anyone.
The author might have been referring to “gauges”.. Possibly?
If you don’t know what those are, a simple Google search will be helpful.
I’ve seen a few people around lately with ear hardware that goes well beyond “piercing” and into “how big was that bet, chief?” territory – like they’ve had the kind of grommets you see at the corners of tarps installed in (not hanging from a stud in) their earlobes. Creepy.
I love how in this article it states that the picture was taking at a store they will not name…But if you are a local to Belfast, you know exactly what store that is.
Just out of curiosity, what exactly is tying them to the crimes? I mean, as a post said previously, you don’t need the name of the store to know where this is, and it’s on the opposite side of town (AND the only place in town that you can purchase hard alcohol that late at night).
I feel like I’m misunderstanding something; were the things that he bought found at those areas? That would make more sense to me, but I don’t see anything about that here. Anyways, if someone could explain that to me, that would be appreciated.
There maybe things that they know that don’t talk about in the article, not all the details are always released in the newspaper, and just because that’s the only store to buy hard liquor that late at night is on the other side of town doesn’t mean anything. I know because I have taken people over there from Northport or the other side of Belfast before to get something after Hannaford was closed. So it being on the “other side of town” doesn’t mean anything. But like I said there is probably a lot more to the story that they aren’t telling. Not everything needs to be public knowledge.
Well I know that, and I do agree. But if somebody saw one of them (specifically the one in the picture) then there shouldn’t be any question. But if nobody saw anyone, then it would be safe to assume that if the any of the items in the picture or something extra were left behind, they could run it for fingerprints (which could be done even if the objects were underwater for an extended period of time). If they did that, and the fingerprints were in the system, then there you go. I guess I’m saying that as of right now, it very much appears as though somebody COULD have been in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Love the ‘silky shorts’ circa 1999…Yet another,FASHION VICTIM!!!!!!
can you say jabroinie
that store is the big apple on rt one in belfast anyone with a clue in belfast would know
the one working that at big apple should remember that person easy u gotta see the id to buy any type of alcohol at that store