Vandals hit local beaches, bike path with wanton destruction

Residents and visitors are asked to keep their eyes open for signs of unusual activity – particularly at night  – as it appears that vandals are afoot in Boca Grande.

According to a resident near Sea Grape beach, the series of destructive acts started on Monday, Feb. 28. That morning they realized that all of the beach umbrellas from Sea Grape to Sundown off Gulf Boulevard had been removed and were laying on the ground. At that time the Lee County Sheriff’s Office was notified.

The next day damage was reported to the umbrellas that had been replaced the day before. The day after that, March 2, the umbrellas were found to be slashed with a knife.

The Sheriff’s Office was notified again, and are patrolling area beaches at night more frequently.

The next set of incidents reported occurred on the GICIA Bike Path downtown and involved a set of signs created by children of The Island School. The signs encouraged bike path safety.

According to the GICIA, they realized on the morning of Tuesday, March 8 that two of the signs had been destroyed. The next day, March 9, they received word that all of the signs except two were destroyed – a total of 13 signs.

The signs will be replaced and additional monitoring techniques will be brought into play.

If you have any information on who might have done these things, call the Lee County Sheriff’s Office at 964-2400.