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After a road rage-related revenge plot apparently failed, authorities allege three friends decided to dish out their vengeance on dozens of unsuspecting Weber and Davis County residents.
The three men — a 20-year-old from Roy and two 18-year-olds from Clinton and Roy — are blamed for shooting out more than 100 vehicle and house windows in Roy, Clinton, Riverdale, Ogden and Hooper during the past few days.
"The kids had a hard time remembering which cities they were in because they'd been to so many," said Clinton police Lt. Dave Valentine, who said the three were arrested early Friday.
The crime spree began as a way to seek revenge against another driver who had angered one of the men, said Roy police spokeswoman Anna Bond. She said they never found the driver but allegedly found other targets for their BB guns.
"They couldn't find him, so they apparently shot out [someone else's] window and decided it was a good time and went on to do more," Bond said. She said in addition to vehicle windows, the men also shot out windows of homes.
By Friday morning, police had connected the men to about 50 cases in Roy, about 22 in Clinton and up to 20 each in Riverdale, Ogden and Hooper. Officials estimate the vandals caused more than $100,000 in damage since reports starting rolling in Monday. Investigators said Friday afternoon they are continuing to tally damage estimates and meet with alleged victims and that more vandalism reports were possible.
Bond said the men apparently drove around town randomly shooting out windows. Some victims' property was hit multiple times.
The crime spree ended about 2:45 a.m. Friday after some Clinton police detectives decided to set up surveillance in one of the areas of the city that was hardest hit.
"We knew they kept coming back to the area," Valentine said. "So we knew they lived close."
The detectives conducted their surveillance in an unmarked unit, and Valentine said their diligence was rewarded when they watched one of the men come out of a house carrying a rifle and get into a vehicle. As police followed the vehicle and prepared to stop it, Valentine said detectives witnessed someone inside shoot out a window.
When police searched the vehicle, Valentine said officers discovered two air rifles and three BB-gun handguns, one of which was equipped with a laser.
The three men were turned over to Weber County authorities because residents there suffered more damage than those in Davis, he said.
Valentine said the three men were all friends, and two apparently played in a band together.
They each were booked on suspicion of two counts of criminal mischief, a third-degree felony, authorities said.
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