Berkeley police: Man steals mini bulldozer, digs up Aquatic Park
Police found extensive damage to shrubs and trees, as well as to the drip irrigation system, curbs, pathways and warning poles.
Berkeley police arrested a man over the weekend on suspicion of stealing a "mini bulldozer" from a construction site and using it to dig up wide swaths of Aquatic Park.
A caller asked police for help Sunday at about 2:30 p.m. after seeing a suspicious man in an orange vest who was driving a bulldozer near the roundabout on the south side of the park.
"He is knocking down street signs and garbage cans and honking at passers-by," a dispatcher advised officers.
Officers found the man on the bulldozer in the roundabout and detained him, Berkeley police said in response to a Scanner inquiry.
Police found extensive damage in the area to shrubs and trees, where dirt had been removed from their roots, as well as to the drip irrigation system, and other infrastructure such as pathways, curbs and warning poles marking off sensitive areas.
Officers determined that the man had taken the bulldozer from the construction site at 600 Addison St., about a mile to the north.
Robert Jones. BPD
At the construction site, police found another construction vehicle with a smashed window, which indicated a failed theft attempt, BPD said.
Bulldozer tread marks led from the damaged vehicle and through a broken gate to the roundabout where police had detained the man on the mini bulldozer, police said.
Police identified the arrested man as Robert Eric Jones, 47, of Union City.
He was arrested on suspicion of felony vandalism and vehicle theft and remained at Santa Rita Jail as of publication time with a bail of $35,000.
He is scheduled for arraignment Wednesday at Wiley Manuel Courthouse in Oakland.
