Vandals shoot out windows in downtown SLO after standoff between police, protesters
Vandals struck downtown San Luis Obispo on Monday night, shooting out windows of multiple businesses on Marsh Street hours after a standoff between protesters and police ended with officers firing tear gas at the crowd.
Police said they were looking for four men who they suspected of damaging the Shoe Palace, Central Coast Surfboards and Founders Bank. The men were seen fleeing the scene in a white sedan.
Police said the men used a long BB gun to shoot seven windows at the three businesses, shattering two of them.
The men entered the Shoe Palace, pulled out a mannequin and stole its clothes.
Officers responding to the scene said the needed boards of various sizes to secure the damaged window, and SLO police, sheriff’s deputies and CHP officers patrolled downtown after the incident.
Witness Jay Bender said one of the suspect vehicles was throwing firecrackers out their window just before this vandalism incident occurred.
An assistant manager at Shoe Palace said she was called by her manager and decided to come down and assess the damage. She said two shirts and a pair of shoes were stolen from the front display window after it was broken.
City Manager Derek Johnson also came down to the scene to get an update from the officers. He said the city has tried to be supportive of the protests, but that the message is being polluted by acts of property damage.
Johnson said these business owners have been “fighting for their lives” during the COVID shutdown, and now they have to deal with this.
Scott Smith, owner of Central Coast Surfboards, said the damage to his windows is easily thousands of dollars.
He said a buddy of his was listening to the scanner when he heard about an unruly crowd by the shop. The friend texted Smith, who came down to check it out.
“He said it looks like things are heating up downtown,” Smith said.
He found his front windows peppered with BB shots and one panel completely broken. But it didn’t appear that they took anything from the store.
Smith said he is supportive of the protests and was even proud to live in a city where a protest like that can happen peacefully.
“But this, I don’t understand,” he said, pointing to the shattered glass. “I honestly believe this is unrelated (to the protest).”
This story was originally published June 1, 2020 at 11:22 PM.
