"Probably a couple of teenagers:" Rash of vandalism in New Berlin targets Christmas decorations



NEW BERLIN -- Residents in New Berlin are seeing a rash of vandalism in recent weeks. Since the start of December, the city’s seen more than 15 separate acts of vandalism, with nearly a dozen coming on one day alone.



There appears to be at least one Grinch running around the streets of New Berlin this holiday season.

"They probably have no idea how much that stuff costs," said Ruth Schulz, victim of vandals.

Vandals quite literally tried to stomp the joy out of Ruth Schulz’s Christmas display.

Ruth Schulz



“The “O” and the “Y” from my "joy" were completely on the ground and like crumpled in half like someone had stepped on them and crunched them,” said Schulz.

Vandals also broke candy canes and scattered Schulz's manger scene. Fortunately, she was able to repair part of the display.

“I was so sad. I just bought that last year too," said Schulz.

New Berlin vandalism



Not far from Schulz’s, the vandals seemed to up their aggression to yet another level.

“I noticed what is all this glass around here and then I looked up and I saw a big hole in my window," said Mark Kaminski, victim of vandals.

These are just two out of a string of vandalism incidents police have recorded on the east side of the city since the start of December.

New Berlin vandalism map



“Most of these involve the breaking of car windows and the breaking of Christmas decorations and that type of thing," said New Berlin Police Captain Mike Glider.

Captain Glider says they think the hits are random, yet related. Nearly a dozen happened on December 12th  alone; police believe the vandals shattered several windows with a water bottle.

New Berlin vandalism



“We think it’s probably a couple of teenagers. Bored, looking for something to do," said Glider.

Police have increased patrols in the area and are urging residents to keep an eye out for suspicious behavior. Some are hoping they’re caught before they can strike again.

"I don’t know why they even think of doing that you know? It’s like, okay you need to find something better to do with your time," said Schulz.

Again, police are asking residents to keep an eye out for strange behavior and report it so they can track down the vandals. So far, they've been responding to cold scenes as most of these acts haven't been noticed or reported to them until the next morning.