Elusive slingshot vandal’s year-long spree has cost $500,000, California officials say

Authorities in San Jose, California, are seeking the slingshot vandal — or vandals — they say are responsible for more than $500,000 in damage to shattered windows over the past year.

The Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office announced in a Thursday news release a $20,000 reward in the case, which involves more than 20 incidents along Highway 87, also known as the Guadalupe Freeway.

“We are asking for the public’s help to stop this destructive and dangerous spree,” District Attorney Jeff Rosen said in the release. “This is not just property damage. People live and work behind those windows.”

The district attorney’s crime lab has been hit eight times. Other targets include the SAP Center and the San Jose Museum of Art, the release said. Residential windows also have been shattered.

In one case, a “terrified” woman’s car windows were blown out.

The vandal or vandals fire ball bearings at the windows, presumably using a slingshot, at “potentially lethal speed,” the release said.

Anonymous tips on the vandalism can be sent via Silicon Valley Crime Stoppers P3TIPS mobile app, by calling the tip line at (408) 947-STOP, or online at www.svcrimestoppers.org.

Tips leading to an arrest are eligible for the reward.