The tire slashers returned to the Northeast on Monday night.
Despite what local police have described as around-the-clock surveillance of Aldine and Teesdale streets just east of Frankford Avenue, the vandals targeted at least five cars there shortly before 11 p.m. and escaped undetected.
A police source told the Northeast Times that the crimes occurred within a span of several minutes during a shift change.
Tires were punctured and flattened on three vehicles on the 4000 block of Aldine St., along with two vehicles on the 4000 block of Teesdale St. Patrol officers took the initial reports. Detectives soon arrived at the scene and lifted fingerprint samples from the affected cars.
One police source described the case as “incredible timing” on the part of the vandals, leading investigators to suspect that the culprit or culprits had specific knowledge about undercover police patrols.
Capt. Frank Bachmayer, commander of the 15th Police District, was out of town on business. In the wake of tire-slashing incidents in the same locations last month, he committed to providing “24-hour, seven-day coverage out there.”
On Feb. 13, tires were punctured on at least seven cars on Aldine Street. On Feb. 19, at least 18 cars were similarly vandalized on Aldine and Teesdale streets. On Feb. 22, two cars were vandalized on the 7300 block of Erdrick St.
During a Tuesday news conference, police reportedly announced a $7,500 reward for information leading to the arrest of the vandals. Call Northeast Detectives at 215–686–3153 to report information about the crimes. ••
