CLEVELAND (WJW) – The FOX 8 I-Team has found dozens of visitors to downtown Cleveland going home furious after being hit by thieves causing them big hassles and money.
According to police reports, dozens of people had their cars broken into in a lot of Carnegie Avenue this weekend, and a dozen more vehicles damaged in another lot off of Carnegie Avenue on May 23.
Many of the victims were from out of town and were visiting the city to watch a baseball game or go to dinner.
“Extremely aggravating,” said one victim who asked not to be identified. “We had a 30-minute drive home in the cold, with no window, two kids in the back seat that had to basically sit on glass.”
Jim Clark said he just left the Guardians game Friday night when he and several others discovered the windows of their cars were shattered.
“We got to our car and our window is busted out,” Clark told the I-Team. “People in front of us got to their car, their window was busted, and the car behind us had both windows busted.”
Some of the victims said they waited for police for more than an hour. Others said they drove to the third district police headquarters to file a report.
“We got into the lot and there were literally dozens of cars, people standing around them. smashed glass everywhere,“ said David Karpinski. “Mine was in one of the back corners so we couldn’t see it. We were walking to it saying, ‘please not mine, please not mine,’ and then I turned the corner and both windows, driver side front and rear, were smashed out.”
Some of the vehicles ransacked. A few valuables were stolen, while others said nothing was taken.
Many of the recent victims we talked to say they are concerned about parking downtown and they would like to see some of the lots and garages hire security.
“That is the big discussion in the house right now. Do we even feel safe going down there in July?” one victim told us. “It is a hassle to get the car fixed and we don’t want to go through this again.”
Police are investigating. Anyone with information on the recent downtown car break-ins is asked to call detectives at the third district police headquarters.