Vandals deface Bonkowski campaign signs

Supervisor Brad Bonkowski says 20 of his campaign signs were vandalized sometime during the night.

The signs were all spray-painted with black paint. He said it’s obvious he was the specific target of the vandals since other campaign signs for different candidates around his signs were untouched.

Bonkowski said at $24 per sign and $20 to remove the old sign and install a new one, his cost totals $880. In addition, one of fellow candidate John Barrette’s signs was damaged — a $44 cost.

Defacing campaign signs is destruction of property and can be treated as a felony if total damages exceed a certain amount.

Bonkowski said spray-painting his signs “is just silly.”

“Does whoever did this think it will make me step out of the campaign?”

He said the damage to his signs was one thing but he was infuriated when Michael Robbins told him someone shot out the Curry Street windows of Hannifan’s Antiques last night.

“That will certainly run the cost of damages up by many hundreds of dollars,” he said.

The windows were shot out with a pellet gun, damaging signs for himself, Barrette and Mayor Bob Crowell — a total cost of about $1,400.

He said no business should have to deal with that kind of damage because someone doesn’t like its choice of candidate. “No other candidate should have to deal with an act like this either,” Bonkowski said. “Have your say in the voting booth where it belongs.”

He said he has filed a complaint with the Carson City Sheriff’s Department.

Bonkowski is running for his second four-year term on the Board of Supervisors.