Councilman's property vandalized

MALDEN, Mo. - A Malden City Councilman retired Friday evening, Aug. 23, and woke the following morning to find his property vandalized.

Ward II Councilman and Mayor Pro tempore Robert House, a longtime member of law enforcement and veteran council member, said his pickup truck was parked at his Madison Street home and was tagged by vandals.

“I went out there to my truck about 8:15 a.m. to go to town,” House said. “Somebody Friday night had sprayed red paint across the hood.”

Although House has no security devices at his home, his neighbors are coming to his aid.

“They have security cameras,” House noted. “They're reviewing their hard drives.

“They have pictures of the front of my truck before it was painted,” he added. “And after it was painted. We really have no suspects right now.”

House said he reported the crime to the Malden Department of Public Safety and that investigation continues.

A Malden resident for 77 years and a police officer for 35 of those, House said this is the only time he's ever felt victimized.

“I never had no kind of vandalism at all,” he said. “I'm going on my fifth year on the council.

“I can't think of any reason why anyone would want to do this unless it was because of a council action,” he added. “Or maybe because of what's going on with the sewer district. I really don't know. I know there are people in town who are upset with the council over some business. But there's no hard evidence of anything like that.”

Even though such petty crimes are irritating for victims and the courts, House joked about the matter.

“Police investigators are hoping to catch the criminals red-handed,” the councilman said.