In Dallas, a group of tenants is concerned after more than a dozen vehicles were vandalized and broken into. Neighbors said they are frustrated by the weekend crimes at The Gabriella Apartments on Cantegral Street in north Deep Ellum.
Leah Easterwood recently finished moving into her new apartment.
“I’ve been here for about three weeks. I moved in at the end of April,” Easterwood said.
Their peaceful weekend was shattered by intruders.
“It has not been good. My car was broken into,” Easterwood said. “Nothing was stolen from the vehicle, which is unusual. But they broke one of my windows. So it will cost me about $400 to replace the window.”
Easterwood parked his car in the residents’ parking lot on Saturday afternoon.
“The door is on level three, and it’s just metal,” Easterwood said. “You’re supposed to have a parking sticker to get into the garage or a toll tag. But there’s a slight delay when the door opens. So someone could technically get behind you if they you time it right.”
However, Easterwood was not aware of the vandalism or that he was a victim of it until he received a message on his social media account.
“Actually, I found out through Instagram. Someone had tagged me in a post, which was a TikTok that went viral, and they were jokingly asking me, ‘Oh my god, did they break into your car?’ And I went out to the garage and I saw my car. You know, the window had been broken,” Easterwood said.
The TikTok was made by his neighbor, Ashley Cormier.
“I’ve lived here for almost two years,” Cormier said.
Cormier said this is not the first incident of vehicle vandalism he has witnessed or been a victim of.
“I actually personally had a vehicle stolen from this parking lot. That was in March of 2022. We filed a police report with that,” Cormier said. “My storage unit has been broken into. Several people’s vehicles have been packed before this. Everyone has reached out to management via email or phone. It seems our voices are not being heard.”
According to the Dallas Police Department, there have been 13 motor vehicle thefts and five criminal offenses reported at The Gabriella in the past 12 months. However, this last string has yet to be assigned to a detective.
In an email sent to residents today, management said they will be adding patrols for more visibility.
In a statement to NBC 5, Greystar Properties said:
“A number of car break-ins and vandalism occurred in the community after hours, when our on-site office was closed. We sent out a notice to residents on Monday after we were able to gather more information about these incidents from residents and the police. We are currently assisting the police with their investigation and will update residents as we receive more information from local authorities.”
However, residents want permanent changes.
“We proposed ‘Hey, raise everybody’s rent a little bit to help pay for a security guard or to help pay for a better door,'” Cormier said. “It’s definitely frustrating. I never know if I’m safe.”
“We were basically told to keep the doors locked with high value items,” Easterwood said. “Most of our cars were locked and no valuables were taken. So I don’t think this will stop the problem. I’d like to see better security. Garage cameras don’t. They even work , so why do we have them? I think we should increase some kind of security.”
However, Easterwood along with other neighbors are considering moving and letting others know.
“I don’t feel safe here and I’m considering breaking my lease,” Easterwood said.
