Last modified: Monday, August 6, 2007 4:31 PM EDT Damage to a soda machine at Mason Field in North Attleboro. (Staff photo by KEITH NORDSTROM) Vandals caught after causing ‘tens of thousands of dollars’ damage BY DAVID LINTON SUN CHRONICLE STAFF NORTH ATTLEBORO — Teenage vandals went on a crime spree early today that one investigator likened to “two little tornadoes,” breaking into cars, toppling tomb stones and causing thousands of dollars in damage to the middle school. The suspects, ages 13 and 14, were arrested several hours after police and fire officials responded to the middle school about 2 a.m. and discovered a wave of vandalism throughout the school. School officials are still trying to tally the damage and determine what can be repaired through cleaning, rather than having to be replaced. Preliminary estimates put at the damage at “tens of thousands of dollars” and possibly as much as $50,000, Superintendent Rick Smith said. “It’s very disappointing to learn that there are children who have so little respect for such an important town entity — our middle school,” Smith said. Police and fire officials responded to the school for a smoke alarm, triggered after the vandals sprayed a fire extinguisher in a hallway. The vandals knocked over trash barrels, splattered paint, glue and coffee grounds over carpeting and equipment and emptied desk drawers of their contents onto the floor. The vandalism occurred in 15 different areas on the first and second floors of the school off Landry Avenue, according to police and school officials. Although shocked by the extent of the damage, Smith expressed concern for the suspects. “I’m concerned for the well-being of these two kids and what is going on in their lives that would lead to this behavior,” he said. “There’s no question that when school opens, the evidence of this episode will be gone, but the fact that it happened will continue to trouble us,” Smith said. Smith said he expects the town’s insurance carrier to pay for the cost of the clean up and repairs. He added that that the legal system would require some type of restitution as one of the consequences of the teens’ actions. The two suspects were arrested walking on Spring Street after being spotted by officers Paul Lalancette and Gary Maitland. The trail of the suspects had been tracked by a state police dog, and they were linked to the vandalism by physical evidence found at the middle school, Detective Lt. David Dawes said. He declined to disclose what physical evidence police had. In addition to vandalizing the school, the teenagers broke into a storage shed at Mason Field and toppled two tomb stones at St. Mary Cemetery off Towne Street, Dawes said. They also threw grave ornaments, flowers and flags from four other graves at the cemetery and vandalized a maintenance truck at Mount Hope Cemetery, Dawes said. “When you have someone’s grave desecrated, it doesn’t get any lower than that,” Dawes said. “And when people ask why, there isn’t a reason.” Leo Raymond of North Attleboro visits his wife’s grave almost everyday and was a “little ticked off” when he found the two solar lights taken from the grave and smashed. “I think it was kids who have nothing else better to do,” Raymond said. “I think that when they knock over the grave stones, that’s really bad.” The suspects also broke into a car on Janice Lane and stole a laptop computer, which they destroyed, Dawes said. The vandalism spree was investigated by Dawes and Detective John Reilly, who were assisted by Sgts. Shane McKenna and Joseph DiRenzo. Dawes said the suspects were charged with several counts of breaking and entering, malicious destruction and defacing a grave. The suspects were brought to Attleboro Juvenile Court for arraignment.