Jun 23, 2009 11:23 am US/Central
At Least 17 Cars Set On Fire In One Morning
Fires Being Investigated As Arsons
CHICAGO (CBS) ―
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One of at least 17 cars that was set on fire in what appears to be random acts of vandalism in the Ukrainian Village and Humboldt Park neighborhoods.
CBS
At least 17 cars were set on fire in the Humboldt Park and Ukrainian Village neighborhoods just on Tuesday alone, and police want to know who's doing it, and why.
As CBS 2's Susan Carlson reports, the cars were damaged or destroyed in what appears to be an extreme case of random vandalism.
Seven cars were found burning in the 1600 block of North Keeler Avenue in the Humboldt Park community about 4:15 a.m., according to sergeant from the police Bomb and Arson Section. All of the fires seemed to have been ignited near the windshield.
Anthony Trujillo's car was parked on that block, and he woke up to an alarming sight.
"What can I do?" Trujillo said. "I just came out to see; I thought it was from the inside, but it was from the engine."
A short time later, six more vehicles were found on fire about a mile east in the 1600 block of North Spaulding Avenue about 4:45 a.m. – where it appeared that one car was set on fire on one side of Spaulding and the flames spread to two other vehicles, while three other cars were burning on the opposite side of Spaulding, according to the sergeant.
"I came to the window and I see my car on fire along with several other cars, and I came out. It was not a good scene," said Joe Paredes, who owns one of the vehicles that was torched. "I was supposed to have parked it in the garage, but I did not. Now I have this."
Ariana Jackson woke up to the same fire trucks. She said she was initially relieved to hear no one was hurt.
"Then I got mad, because that's what I go to work for every day," she said. "That's my way to make money."
But instead of going to work on Tuesday, Jackson was stuck at home, on the phone with her insurance company.
The sergeant said an additional car may have also been set on fire down the street from the Spaulding Avenue block.
Four additional vehicles – making the total 17 – were found on fire near the intersection of Erie and Wood streets in the Ukrainian Village neighborhood about 5:40 a.m., according to Wood District police.
The owners of the cars are now questioning whether it's worth it to repair their cars.
When asked how much he thought repairs would cost, Trujillo said: "Maybe $1,500 or around that. It may be better to buy another one than fixing that one."
Carlos Macia considers himself one of the luckier victims, but still, he was none too happy.
"A couple of hundred dollars," Macia said. "That's money I could give for food for my kid."
When asked why he thought someone would want to torch the cars, Macia replied, "I think people have got nothing to do."
Some of the victims are calling for beefed up police protection, saying vandalism is a growing problem, particularly in the Humboldt Park neighborhood.
Police News Affairs said the fires are currently being classified as arsons, but no one was in custody as of 11 a.m.
The police Bomb and Arson Section is investigating.
CBS 2's Susan Carlson and the STNG Wire contributed to this report.
(© MMX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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