Vandalism leaves broken windows, mailboxes in Washburn

5 years ago

WASHBURN, Maine — A 16-year-old boy is facing multiple criminal mischief charges in connection with a weekend vandalism spree in Washburn that left the small town reeling with a range of property damage.  

Early Saturday morning, the Washburn Police Department began receiving reports of vandalism around town, according to police chief Rob Thibeault. The property damage included broken mailboxes and multiple broken windows throughout town, including on a school bus and a town recreation department van, and at the Salmon Brook Historical Society Barn and Story Hill Estates apartments.

“There were nine or ten different sites,” Thibeault said Monday.

A teenager was charged in the incident and is facing three counts of aggravated criminal mischief and six counts of criminal mischief, Thibeault said. The aggravated counts are due to the value of damaged items being more than $2,000, Thibeault said. The identity of the boy is not being released, as the names of juveniles accused of crimes are kept confidential under state law.

Thibeault said the incident remains under investigation, and a full accounting of all the property damage is still underway as residents and organizations submit information.

“We’re not even close to that yet,” he said of estimating the total amount of property damage.

He said the police department is “still looking into” whether other individuals were involved in the vandalism.