The Gilbert Police Department is searching for the culprits who caused more than $30,000 damage to a classroom at Islands Elementary School over the weekend.
Someone entered the room between Friday night and Sunday and smeared paint, glue and glitter on the walls, tore up ceiling tiles, sprayed a fire extinguisher, destroyed the carpet and vandalized a television, two computers, and a desk, police and school officials said.
"It’s a big thing. We talked about it all morning," said student Bobby Pollack, 9. "It’s so bad. It stinks."
There were no signs of forced entry and detectives are trying to determine if the building, located at 245 S. McQueen Road, was unlocked or if someone used a key, police Sgt. Jeff Esslinger said.
Dianne Bowers, spokeswoman for the Gilbert Unified School District, said the district is offering a $200 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the vandals.
"I think it’s important to make sure the community knows it is significant and it is important to maintain safety," Bowers said.
Bowers said the district, which paid a $1,000 insurance deductible to cover its cost, hopes to return the class to the room by Friday.
Pollack’s mother, Parent-Teacher Organization president Cheryl Pollack, said a few cases of apple juice left at the school for a PTA meeting were destroyed
by vandals earlier in the year.
