Freeway Drivers On Edge After Multiple BB Attacks Shatter Their Windows | Southern California
5.21.21 | ORANGE, RIVERSIDE, CORONA | (CNS) – Another four vehicles were damaged Friday by BB or pellet gun fire in Corona and Orange County, adding to a soaring tally of vandalism since last month.
One was reported about 11 a.m. on the southbound Costa Mesa (55) Freeway near Katella Avenue in Orange where the vehicle’s windshield was struck twice by a pellet gun, said California Highway Patrol Officer John DeMatteo.
“It was consistent with the BB gun damage that we’ve seen,” DeMatteo said.
Another incident was reported about 2:15 p.m. on the Costa Mesa (55) Freeway northbound at Del Mar Avenue in Costa Mesa, DeMatteo said. The driver’s side window was damaged in that incident, DeMatteo said.
Yet another incident occurred about 2:25 p.m. on the eastbound Riverside (91) Freeway at the San Gabriel (57) Freeway, DeMatteo said. In that incident the rear window was damaged, he added.
Another incident was reported on the 91 Freeway in Corona as well on Friday, but details were not immediately available.
On Thursday, four more vehicles were damaged on the 91 Freeway and the Garden Grove (22) Freeway.
California Highway Patrol Officer Dan Olivas told City News Service three vehicles were struck shortly before 6 a.m. Thursday, all on the westbound 91 Freeway near the 71 Freeway.
Another driver’s rear passenger window was shattered about 8:55 a.m. on the eastbound 22 Freeway near Euclid Avenue in Garden Grove, said CHP Officer Mitch Smith.
A vehicle’s window was shattered just before 6 a.m. on the westbound 91 Freeway at the 241 Tollway in the Anaheim Hills area, said CHP Officer Florentino Olivera.
Another vehicle was damaged about 8 a.m. on the westbound 91 near Sixth Street in Corona, but the motorist phoned it in when he arrived in Orange County, Olivera said.
No one has been injured in the series of incidents.
“Again, we’re asking the public if they’re a victim of an incident to get right on the Bluetooth and call 911 and describe every vehicle in the area,” Olivera said.
The CHP has boosted patrols on the area’s freeways and may be a short distance away and have a better chance of capturing a potential suspect if the call is made right away, Olivera said. Also, the freeway cameras will help isolate a consistent make or model of a suspect vehicle if investigators can narrow down where the incident occurred.
In all, the CHP believes there have been nearly 60 incidents throughout Los Angeles, Orange and Riverside counties over the past few weeks. No injuries have been reported in any of the attacks.
White vehicles have been spotted in each of the attacks, but no specific descriptions of the cars or suspects have been provided.
“We are taking each of these incidents seriously and actively searching for those responsible,” CHP Border Division Assistant Chief Donald Goodbrand said Wednesday. “The public should still feel safe while driving their vehicles on our California freeways.”
Shortly after 5 a.m. Wednesday, a Toyota Camry sustained damage from a BB or pellet that hit it in the area of the Corona (71) Expressway and the westbound 91. The motorist was not hurt.
At 5:30 a.m. Thursday, a third car was damaged on the westbound 91 near the Costa Mesa (55) Freeway in Anaheim Hills, according to the CHP.
Olivera said a vehicle was hit at the 91 and state Route 241 toll road in Anaheim Hills about 9 a.m. Tuesday. On Monday at about 6:30 p.m., there was another incident at the 91 and Orange (57) Freeway in Anaheim, he said.
About 9 a.m. Friday, a CHP officer’s cruiser sustained a damaged window on the eastbound 91 at the 241, Olivera said.
“An officer was finishing up an enforcement stop and completing notes on the citation when he heard a noise and the back window was shattered. There were big rigs going by at the same time,” so it might have been a rock that caused the damage, Olivera said. “We’re not sure what shattered the window.”
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