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STEVE THOMPSONThe Sheriff's Office thinks someone was roaming the streets shooting off a pellet gun.
Fred Heeter was lying on his couch watching television Tuesday when he heard what sounded like a car backfiring outside his home in Holiday about 9:30 p.m.
He didn't think much about it until a Pasco sheriff's deputy knocked on his door later.
His daughter's van had been one of about 30 vehicles damaged Tuesday night as vandals apparently armed with a pellet gun left a trail of broken glass winding through neighborhoods in Holiday, Port Richey and New Port Richey.
"The whole back window was just shattered," Heeter recalled Wednesday.
Dismayed residents like Heeter heard shots and breaking glass, but had few clues as to who might have been behind the damage.
One man said he saw a dark colored vehicle driving away and could hear laughter coming from inside.
Whoever it was ended up doing thousands of dollars in damage.
"It was either juveniles," sheriff's spokesman Kevin Doll said, "or adults displaying juvenile behavior."
The Sheriff's Office is looking for help from the public.
"Somebody out there knows who did this," Doll said. "And we ask them to give us a call."
Anybody with information can call the Sheriff's Office desk officer at (727) 844-7764.
"I'd love them to get caught," said Heeter, who will spend hundreds of dollars fixing his daughter's window. "I think they should do lots and lots of community service."
- Steve Thompson covers crime in Pasco County. He can be reached in west Pasco at 869-6245, or toll-free at 1-800-333-7505, ext. 6245. His e-mail address is sthompson@sptimes.com