Downtown Idaho Falls businesses damaged in early morning vandalism spree
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IDAHO FALLS — Business owners in downtown Idaho Falls are seeking answers after experiencing broken windows and other damage to their storefronts early Saturday morning.
Shane Dial, president of the Downtown Merchants Association, says the incident happened around 5 a.m. Great Harvest Bakery Cafe, Medical Recovery Services and Idaho Mountain Trading were the businesses affected.
Other damage included flower pots being smashed, plants ripped out of the soil onto the sidewalk and front windows being broken.
Dial believes the responsible person could have been under the influence of drugs or was suffering a severe mental health crisis.
He alleges that they captured photos and video footage of the culprit.
“The individual walked from Jalisco’s across the river, tagged Great Harvest and ripped out their flowers, and then turned down Shoupe (street) tearing things up.”
“He passed right in front of my building, but luckily there was nothing outside to destroy. It’s horrible when a mental health crisis results in so much destruction, but that doesn’t absolve anyone from being held accountable. We are fully committed to finding who did this and holding them responsible,” Dial continued.
Great Harvest marketing manager Skyler Berry says that they hadn’t discovered the damage to the flower pots at the front of the store until later that morning. They were unable to capture the vandal on camera because the store’s front awning was rolled out.
Additional damage included a broken street light and a hanging pot. A customer mentioned that the window across the street was shattered.
Around 8:30 a.m., the store’s employees reportedly called the owners of Idaho Mountain Trading to let them know about a broken window.
Idaho Mountain Trading Manager Daniel Bonney says the only damage done to their building was the front window. They were also unsuccessful at getting any identifiable information from surveillance footage.
As of Monday afternoon, Idaho Falls Police Department Jessica Clements says no reports have been made, and no damage costs have been measured. She’s encouraging those who were affected to file a report online and submit any pictures they may have.
“An investigation cannot start until we actually have a report filed. We are reaching out to key downtown stakeholders to urge people to report damage,” Clemments said. “If people assume we cannot do anything and do not file a report, it hampers the process. Without accurately documented damages, it affects our ability to hold people accountable or seek compensation.”
Anyone with information or video footage should contact the police department or report it anonymously through Crime Stoppers. Reports filed will help create an accurate damage estimate. Tips leading to an arrest may result in a cash reward.