Detective Sandy Girdner of the Sallisaw Police Department said she received a call about 5:40 a.m. Friday morning about vandalism at the Sallisaw High School. When she arrived she said several buses were damaged, and windows were broken in the vo-ag building,
“It is a mess,” she said.
Police Chief Shaloa Edwards said the vo-ag building received extensive damage. Two buses were driven into the tree lines. One bus was rammed against two cars. One bus was driven through the vo-ag building garage door and one through the fence.
Edwards, displeased about the vandalism to the school, said, “People who do stuff like this are cowards.
“There are broken windows, ceiling tiles pulled off, and some of the walls are destroyed,” Edwards said.
He said the vandals flooded the vo-ag building. They took some of the Blue and Gold meat the Future Farmers of America sell for fundraising purposes out of the freezers and threw the packages all over the floor.
Ron Wyrick, Sallisaw School superintendent, said three classrooms in the building were destroyed. He said about 12 buses were damaged. Three teacher assistants’ vehicles were damaged when the vandals drove a bus into the vehicles sides. The teacher assistants were attending out-of-town training and left their cars at the school.
“Several buses were bumped which caused a little exterior damage,” Wyrick said. “We do have insurance. As soon as investigators get done processing the crime scene I’m calling our insurance company to have them assess the damage.”
Wyrick said the classrooms that were destroyed will require those classes be held inside the high school until the building is repaired.
The Sequoyah County Sheriff’s Office and a forensic officer from the Fort Smith Police Department are assisting the Sallisaw Police Department.
Edwards said the Fort Smith Forensic Crime Scene Investigator will help provide technology the Sallisaw Police Department doesn’t have.
Edwards said the school probably suffered about $250,000 worth of damages.
“We have a few leads that we are following. There is evidence left behind and we are getting assistance from other law enforcement agencies.
“Working together we should be able to close this investigation soon,” Edwards said.
“It’s too soon to determine if the vandalism at Blue Ribbon Auto Group and this vandalism are related.”
