Mayfair Resident Falls Victim To Tire Vandalism, Again
By Elizabeth Hur
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Concern is growing once again in Philadelphia's Mayfair neighborhood, following yet another tire slashing.
"I was livid," Dave Toledo had a reason to be frustrated. He woke up to find his tire slashed again. This brings the count up to 11 tires, that's how many times his family alone has been hit by the vandal or vandals.
Toledo explained, "Between my jeep, my wife and my car."
So there was no way he would miss the "Block Watch" meeting hosted by the Philadelphia police. This was in response to the ongoing tire slashing incidents on the 4000 blocks of Aldine and Teesdale Streets. Police say since February, about 40 cars have been hit, a number of them more than once. So on this night, about three dozen neighbors gathered to map out a plan to fight back.
Some were convinced vigilante justice was inevitable. A Mayfair resident who identified himself only as "Ed" told reporters, "Sometimes a little street corner justice gets the job done. Sooner or later, somebody's going get hurt. I just hope it's the right guy."
Others contend it's time for the residents to step up and work with the police.
Danielle Theodore said, "I thought it was informative and I think they're doing a great job."
For obvious reasons police say they can't disclose everything they are doing but Capt. Frank Bachmayer explained, "Neighbors were talking about everything from putting up cameras to turning on or off their lights. So they're serious about this. They're going to be out on their porches to help us and we're going to be relentless. We're not going to give up. We're out here to get information from the public. We're out here to make an apprehension or to prevent this individual from coming back again."
There is now a $10,000 reward being offered for information leading to the capture and conviction of the individual(s) responsible. Of that, officials say $5,000 is available for information leading to just an arrest.
The reward is being administered by the Citizens Crime Commission. Anonymous tips can be submitted through the commission's tip line.
Information should be called in to the Crime Commission Tipline at 215-546-TIPS.
Anonymity protected
