Vandal uses chainsaw to cut down trees along several downtown LA streets

An alleged vandal who was armed with a chainsaw cut down several trees along downtown Los Angeles streets over the weekend.

Witnesses tell CBS News Los Angeles that the trees were cut down overnight between Friday night and Saturday morning, and pictures from the scene show the felled trees lying in the road in multiple locations, including:

Hope Street and Ninth Street,
Grand Avenue and Fifth Street,
Broadway and Cesar Chavez Avenue, and
Olympic Boulevard and Figueroa Street.
Los Angeles Police Department investigators say they have not made any arrests, but say the alleged suspect is described as being dressed in all black, riding around on a BMX-style bike.

People throughout the area on Sunday noted the bizarre nature of the incident, confused as to why someone would go out of their way to wreak such havoc.

"I wish that didn't happen, we gotta grow the trees back," said Jarrell Walker. "My daughter was just playing with the bees, so for her to understand the environment of what it brings to nature, I don't know why someone would take away from the trees, especially in downtown which is not a lot of opportunity for trees to grow."
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A spokesperson for Mayor Karen Bass also issued a statement, noting that crews were already working to determine how they could replace the impacted trees.

"That someone would do this is truly beyond comprehension. City public works crews are assessing the damage and we will be making plans to quickly replace these damaged trees. LAPD has opened an investigation into what happened and those responsible must be held accountable," said the statement.


https://www.cbsnews.com/losangeles/news/vandals-use-chainsaw-to-cut-down-trees-along-several-downtown-la-streets/


Several trees lining the sidewalks in downtown Los Angeles were sawed down over the weekend in an incident the mayor’s office described as “truly beyond comprehension.”

A spokesperson for LAPD said they have footage of a person cutting the trees with a power saw and are investigating what happened.

We saw signs of tree damage at the following intersections:

Olympic Boulevard and Figueroa Street
South Grand Avenue and 5th Street
South Grand Avenue and West 3rd Street
Olympic Boulevard and Hope Street

An LAPD spokesperson told LAist the department has reviewed footage showing a suspect at 1:30 a.m. Saturday “cutting the trees and riding off on a bicycle.” The suspect was wearing dark clothing, according to the spokesperson.

https://laist.com/news/transportation/trees-cut-down-in-downtown-la