Pepperell schools damaged for third time
♦ Police following up after vandals caught on video.
For the third time this summer Pepperell school officials are looking at damage done by vandals who broke into school property during the night leaving behind smashed glass and damaged equipment.
The concession stand at Pepperell High School took some heavy damage over the weekend according to school officials. Principal Jamey Alcorn believes the torn up doors and the smashed glass at the concession stand happened on Saturday and Sunday night.
“They did it in really bad,” he said.
Video surveillance showed two teenage boys on skateboards causing the damage he said. Video has been sent to officials at the board of education who have been in contact with the systems insurance agency and the county police. The video has also been sent to Pepperell Middle School administrators to see if the two can be identified and several names have been given to the police.
Alcorn said the doors to the stand were pried open with a crowbar and the fronts of the stand-up drink refrigerators were smashed. Board Chair and representative for the Pepperell Community Tony Daniel said the destruction is absolutely ridiculous and is the work of unsupervised juveniles. There has never been anything like this that has happened over the summer he said.
Pepperell Middle’s gym was also broken into earlier this summer Superintendent Jeff Wilson said. The school portion of the middle school is currently under abatement and demolition, however the gymnasium was being kept and re-purposed for the new school. Video surveillance was disconnected during demolition so no footage was caught of the person or persons who may have caused the damage at Pepperell Middle.
Vandals at Pepperell Middle threw paint all over the gym floor and smashed every piece of glass they could find, Wilson said. They also broke the basketball goals which could have been repurposed he added. After the gym was broken into the second time the system put a fence around the property to deter vandals as well as keep them out of the partially demolished middle school.
The city school system has also had their taste of damaged property as well as theft this summer as four individuals broke into North Heights Elementary on June 26. The four stole around $8,000 worth of computer equipment from the elementary school, which is closed while Main Elementary is being completed.
Superintendent Lou Byars said there are no updates as of yet but he hopes to hear updates soon. Anyone with tips for the Pepperell breakins can contact the county police and those with tips on the North Heights burglary can reach out to the Rome police.