MAN ARRAIGNED ON 15 CHARGES OF CAR VANDALISM
[THIRD Edition]
Boston Globe - Boston, Mass.
Subjects: Automobile parking; Vandalism; Arraignment
Author: Fleisher, Lisa
Date: Jun 24, 2005
Start Page: B.4
Section: Metro/Region
Document Text
One resident started carrying pepper spray after she found threatening notes about the California license plates on her car. In another household, family members took turns staying up on all-night watches until they finally bought a security camera.
Before police made an arrest last month, tension reigned among residents whose cars were being vandalized with spray paint, glue, sand, chocolate syrup, and screwdrivers.
Yesterday, the man whom residents have dubbed "the parking ****" was arraigned on 15 new charges stemming from the swath of destruction that Robert A. Feest allegedly left in the last three years as he walked his dog. Police say, however, that the vandalism and threatening notes date back at least seven years and became increasingly frequent over time.
Feest has been held in lieu of $100,000 bail since May 25, when he was arrested after police allegedly saw him scratch a police decoy minivan with Texas plates.
Once charges were filed in court, many more people came forward with complaints, according to prosecutors, who expect to add to the case when Feest returns to court July 18, said David Procopio, spokesman for the Suffolk County District Attorney's office.
With spray-painted arrows for cars parked too far from the edge of a driveway, newspaper articles left on vehicles with out-of- state plates, and nasty notes bagged in plastic on rainy days, residents said they felt like they were being stalked.
"It really isn't about parking," said Andrew Maydoney. "It's about control and fear. The notes say very specific things that only someone who knows you or sees you around could know."
Larry Groff, 51, who lives two doors down from Feest, said he became paranoid about his parking. "I was worried I was going to get into trouble with the enforcer," he said. "You're always aware not to break the rules."
Residents said that at first, the police brushed off the complaints as minor. Emilia Pisani said she remembered being incredulous when a police officer suggested the neighbors work it out among themselves.
But residents did not want to pursue it with one another. "We're all afraid we're talking to the criminal," Pisani said.
Instead, neighborhood crime watches formed with the help of police. Community meetings were held, some of which Feest attended, and sometimes neighbors scrutinized each other's handwriting to compare with the notes on their windshields.
"On our street, we were all trying to figure out which one of us it was," Maydoney said. "We'd go to these neighborhood crime watch meetings and check out how people were signing into the meeting. Was their writing similar to the writing on the notes? It's completely ridiculous, but that's what it came down to."
Yesterday, several cars along Enfield Street showed long scratch marks on the driver's side panels. A splotch of white spray paint with dried drips marked one gray pickup truck. But on vehicles with expired registrations, the windshields were bedecked with the familiar bright orange tickets of the Boston Police Department.
Residents say they prefer the city's fines to the vandal's tagging.
After silently suspecting one another, residents say they have learned their neighbors' names.
"Uncannily, he kind of brought people together, having something to talk about and worry about together," said Cynthia Lin.
Lisa Fleisher can be reached at
lfleisher@globe.com.
