Authorities announced a reward of up to $1,000 Tuesday for information regarding a recent felony vandalism spree that has ruined dozens of parking meters in the Balboa Park area, resulting in tens of thousands of dollars in losses.
The spree of malicious damage, which occurred between Dec. 24 and Feb. 6, has left a total of 52 newly installed parking pay stations inoperable, according to the San Diego Police Department.
The responsible vandal or vandals variously spray-painted the machines, shattered their glass screens and/or put some sort of sticky substance on their keypads, rendering them unusable. The city has estimated the combined cost of the damages at roughly $77,000.
The offenses have taken place in the 2700 to 3200 blocks of Balboa Drive; 1900 block of Eighth Avenue; 600 block of Juniper Street; 2800 and 3300 blocks of Park Boulevard; 1800 to 2900 blocks of Sixth Avenue; and 1800 block of Village Place.
Anyone with information about the crimes was asked to call San Diego County Crime Stoppers at 888-580-8477 or contact the agency online at sdcrimestoppers.org. Tipsters may remain anonymous.
