Reward offered for Batavia city hall intruder

Batavia police say vandalism and trespassing that happened Saturday at the Batavia Government Center were done by the same person.

They are offering a $50 reward to the first person to identify a man seen walking through both secured and unsecured areas of the building at 3:30 a.m., according to a news release.

Police believe he entered the building by throwing a plywood Christmas decoration through a glass door off the city council chamber at the south end of the building at 100 N. Island Ave. They believe he was trying to get into the police department’s offices. On a surveillance video, the man can be seen trying to open a door on the second floor that leads to the city mailroom, then walking across the lobby toward a door that leads to the police investigations offices.

After going downstairs into the police department lobby, he was spotted by records clerks, who called officers. When officers approached him outside the east side of the building, he ran away, Detective Sgt. Shawn Mazza said.

The surveillance video is posted on the Batavia Crime Stoppers Facebook page.

Tips, which will be kept anonymous, can be submitted through the Facebook page or by calling (630) 454-2500.