Broken glass still litters the 2100 block of Jefferson Park Avenue after an intoxicated man broke the rear windows of 14 cars with a hatchet Saturday morning, according to Charlottesville Police.
The vandalism occurred at approximately 5:20 a.m. and a suspect was apprehended and handcuffed about 15 minutes later.
"Someone called in and told us a man was smashing windows on cars," Charlottesville Police Sgt. David Jones said."They said the vandal was wearing a dark jacket and that he ran behind a dumpster near the railroad tracks."
The vandal was identified as 19-year-old Jacob Majeski, a white male from Madison County, Va. Jones said Majeski is not a student at the University.
Majeski was charged with 14 counts of destruction of private property. He was held in the Charlottesville Regional Jail but has since been released on bail.
Area residents were drawn to the scene by the presence of police and broken glass.
"I thought there was a car crash, but then I looked closer and the bumpers were not damaged," said fourth-year College student Aris Paraguya, a JPA resident.
Police said they do not have a motive for the vandalism.
"The vandal invoked his Fifth Amendment rights so we do not know why he vandalized the cars," Jones said.
Police believe a hatchet found nearby was used to destroy the windshields of the cars.
"Majeski ran behind the dumpster by the railroad tracks where he was found and arrested," Jones said. "A hatchet was found 20 yards from where he was arrested."
All 14 cars' rear windshields were smashed in and will require repair. Owners of several vehicles used plastic to cover the damage.
Second-year College student Margaret Rennix, whose back windshield was destroyed, spent Sunday afternoon putting a plastic cover in place of her damaged windshield.
"It's inconvenient, but I thought I was going to be a lot more angry than I was," Rennix said. "It just seems senseless to me."
Only cars parked curbside on JPA were damaged.
"The cars that were parked out on the street in front of my building were vandalized," said third-year College student Gil Bridon, whose car was untouched. "Most of them are parked in the back now, where mine was when it happened."
Some damaged cars were parked near Dürty Nelly's Pub on JPA. The bar, however, was not open Saturday morning when the vandalism occurred.
"Dürty Nelly's Pub was closed at the time of the vandalism," said an employee who preferred to remain unidentified. "I do not know anything about" the crime.
The maximum penalty for the destruction of private property, a class one misdemeanor, is up to one year in jail, a $2,500 fine per car and compensation for damages.
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