Police have arrested someone for basically razing a new Queens playground and causing $100,000 in damage. Seventeen-year-old Allan Swafford, of the Bronx, was arrested yesterday, based on a tip to CrimeStoppers.
Police say the teen took an excavator at the Far Rockaway playground on Beach 29th Street, drove it through a chain link fence and then into various playground equipment. According to A Walk in the Park, "Swafford was charged with Unauthorized Operation of a Motor Vehicle, Criminal Mischief, and Burglary. He has three prior burglary arrests accroing to police." However, Swafford's lawyer says there's little evidence connecting him to the crime.
City Councilman James Sanders Jr., who represents the area, said, "Let this send a message to any criminal element in our midst: Far Rockaway is turning a new page, and this kind of senseless vandalism will no longer be tolerated. This playground will be completed and will open, so that our children will always have a safe place to play and enjoy the great outdoors. Our community refuses to let a senseless and idiotic act of vandalism prevent the residents of B. 29th street from enjoying a playground they deserve."
