Peterborough police have identified four suspects in a rash of vandalism and thefts that began a little before 1 a.m. on Thursday night.
Police were able to link three men and one juvenile to more than 20 damaged mailboxes, three doors that were kicked in, and several thefts from unlocked vehicles based on evidence collected from one vandalism scene.
An officer stopped their vehicle in downtown Peterborough around 2. a.m. based on a description given by a Cabana Drive resident who witnessed a mailbox being vandalized.
Police Chief Scott Guinard said on Friday he could only identify the perpetrators as: a 20-year-old Peterborough man, an 18-year-old Greenfield man, a 21-year-old Rochester man and a 16-year-old juvenile male from Milford. Police reports indicate that the Greenfield and Milford residents were taken into protective custody at 2:30 a.m.
“Once all crimes have been reported, documented and evidence collected, arrest warrants for the responsible parties will be obtained,” Guinard said.
As of Monday, he said the department had not made arrests but expects to sometime later in the week. “It’s a matter of getting caught up on the paperwork,” he said, and that the affidavit accompanying the arrest might be multiple pages long after reports trickled into the office through Thursday.
Residents reported incidents on Greenfield Road, Cabana Drive, Lounsbury Lane, Old Street Road, Hunter Farm Road, Monadnock Lane and Old Jaffrey Road throughout Thursday, according to police records. There was no apparent pattern to the residences targeted, Guinard said.
Officer Joey Sweeney, Master Patrolman Martin Kolb, Master Patrolman George Xenakis, Officer Justin Hyland, Officer Matthew Stone and Sergeant Michael Chapdelaine have been working on these cases non-stop, Guinard said.
He encouraged anybody with information about these or other crimes during this time frame to call the Peterborough Police Department at (603) 924-8050.