Police last week arrested an 81-year-old Southern California man described as a “serial slingshot shooter” who is believed to have been attacking his neighbors for about a decade.
Azusa police said they responded to a “quality of life issue” in the 900 block of North Enid Avenue and learned that “dozens of residents had been victims of a serial slingshot gunman” over the past nine to 10 years.
Police said the man used the weapon to break windows and windshields, at times nearly hitting people. The suspect, Prince King, is 81, according to inmate records. Police have not named an attorney who could comment on the suspect's behalf.
Police executed a search warrant Thursday in the area where the slingshot attack occurred and ultimately arrested King. Ball bearings and a slingshot were found in King's home, police said.
Azusa Police Lt. Jake Busey told the San Gabriel Valley Tribune that police began investigating after the first slingshot incident but have not been able to identify a suspect so far. Busey said Saturday that he did not know how King was ultimately identified, but that detectives learned most of the ball bearings came from King's backyard or “the surrounding area.”
Police have not determined a motive other than “simple malicious mischief,” Bushey said, according to the Tribune.
Bushey said he did not know why specific people or buildings were targeted, but added that the shooting was not random, the paper reported.
Some people commented on the police department's Facebook post saying a car window had been shot out but they didn't know if King was the culprit.
King's next court date is scheduled for Tuesday.
