'Random, indiscriminate spree of property destruction': 100 vehicles vandalized in Vancouver in 1 night

At least 100 vehicles along a nearly six-kilometre swath of Vancouver's West Side had their windows smashed in overnight this week, according to Vancouver police.

The apparently random acts of vandalism stretched from near the intersection of Granville Street and West 64th Avenue in the Marpole neighbourhood all the way to West Broadway and Fir Street, Vancouver Police Department spokesperson Sgt. Steve Addison told reporters Friday.

"It doesn't appear, in most cases, that these are thefts from auto," Addison said. "All appearances are it's just a random, indiscriminate spree of property destruction that's caused a lot of damage and a lot of inconvenience for people."

He said police believe the vandalism occurred overnight between Wednesday and Thursday. Police started getting reports of smashed windows in the area Thursday morning.

"What started as a few reports throughout the day, and even into today, has increased from just a few to 100, if not more," Addison said.

"At this point we have not arrested any suspects. We have not identified any suspects, but we're working on that, and we're going to be pouring a lot of resources into this, because it's quite likely that the damage that's been caused is in the hundreds of thousands of dollars range."

CTV News visited the area on Friday and found dozens of vehicles with smashed or missing windows.

Addison told reporters it appeared that whoever did the smashing did so while walking along main roads and side streets in the early hours of the morning.

The distance between the two intersections police named is approximately 5.8 kilometres. On foot, Google Maps estimates it would take an hour and 22 minutes to walk between them.

Now, investigators are canvassing the entire route, looking for witnesses, dash cam and surveillance video, Addison said.

"That's going to go a long way in helping us, hopefully, begin to identify the person who's responsible," he said.