By BRIDGET TURCOTTE
SAUGUS — Saugus Police Lt. Ronald Giorgetti said a blood sample was taken from the scene at Saugus High School where more than two dozen windows were broken Thursday night.
Officers responded to the school around 6:30 a.m. on Friday and counted 25 broken windows throughout the building. Giorgetti said the investigation is active and ongoing.
“We did recover some physical evidence and it has been taken to be analyzed at a later date,” he said. ”But, unlike a fingerprint, blood is not specific to an individual person. We don’t have any information right now to identify who the individual is.”
A member of the maintenance team cut his long weekend short to secure the building with wooden panels over the broken windows as a temporary solution, said Chairwoman of the School Committee Jeannie Meredith.
“It’s a shame,” said Meredith. “To have something happen in a town that’s already strapped for finances — it’s such a happy time in Saugus and to have something like this happen is very disheartening. I don’t understand why somebody would want to cause so much harm.”
The town has not yet received an estimate for the cost to replace the windows.
The vandalism comes two weeks after voters agreed to a debt exclusion to fund the town’s share of a new, $160 million combination middle-high school. Residents also supported a $25 million district-wide master plan that includes renovations to the Belmonte Middle School and Veterans Memorial Elementary School to reuse the spaces as upper and lower elementary schools.
“I know it’s going to cost a lot of money to replace the windows,” Meredith said. “A lot of the windows are plexiglass, now but the majority of them in the back were glass. We don’t know what’s going to happen at this point but you can’t leave boards on the windows when kids are in school.”
Town Manager Scott Crabtree called the act of vandalism disappointing and noted that it’s not the first time the building has seen destruction.
“This supports the whole idea that you really need cameras at the schools,” he said. “It shows the necessity for having full lighting at our schools, town buildings, parks and playgrounds. It’s very disappointing that the community has to endure this type of bad, criminal behavior. The police will move forward with their investigation, and, if the suspects are identified, we’ll move forward with whatever action needs to be taken for these offenses.”
Giorgetti urged anyone with information to call (781) 233-1740 or to use the anonymous tip line on the Department’s website.
Bridget Turcotte can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @BridgetTurcotte.