8 teens charged in Hoffman vandalism spree

A spate of vandalism at a Hoffman Estates housing complex has eight local teens facing charges, some of them felonies.

Hoffman Estates police say the boys, all 14 to 16 years old, were responsible for 15 separate incidents of vandalism over a little more than a week at the Barrington Square townhouses.

Houses, garage doors, street signs, sidewalks and utilities in the neighborhood were damaged with spray paint and marker.

Three of the boys, all 15-year-olds, face felony criminal defacement of property. One boy was charged with six counts and the other two with seven counts. The others, four from Hoffman Estates and one from Schaumburg, have been charged with misdemeanors.

The difference between a felony and misdemeanor charge in this case is the value of the property damage, Sgt. Gregory Poulos explained. A charge is upgraded to a felony for items valued at more than $300, for example a garage door.

Because the boys are juveniles, police did not release their names.

Poulos said police received vandalism reports from Barrington Square starting Nov. 10. Police received 21 reports in all, he added, but the teens were charged in connection with 15 of the acts.

Acting on a tip, police said they found one of the "main suspects" walking down the 1800 block of Jamestown Circle carrying a spray-paint can. He and three accomplices were arrested a short time later, followed by the four other youths.

All were turned over to their parents and their cases submitted to juvenile court.