Police are trying to figure out who went on a crime spree inside the home of Board of Education member Jerry Schwab over the weekend.
The incident has the beleaguered Schwab wondering if he has a target on his back.
“This a huge invasion of my life and it is very upsetting. I’m afraid,” Schwab said Thursday evening.
Sometime between Saturday night and Sunday morning while Schwab was away, burglars forced their way into his house on Quaker Farms Road through a kitchen door, stole numerous items and destroyed several of Schwab’s belongings.
They stole Schwab’s power tools and other equipment belonging to a contractor who is performing renovations on the property.
The burglars also damaged lawn furniture and demolished a ceramic fireplace.
According to a police report, the vandals tossed the broken pieces of the fireplace into a hot tub outside the residence, which also sustained significant damage.
In addition, Schwab said couches and other furniture in his house were slashed with razor blades.
Schwab is well known in town. In addition to serving on the Board of Education, he is the director of the Oxford Ambulance Association and the president of the Valley Emergency Medical Service.
“This could have been a personal attack, political or a random act of violence,” he said. “At this point there is really no way to tell.”
This has been a rough summer for Schwab, 29.
On July 3, Ansonia police charged him with driving under the influence. Schwab maintains he wasn’t drunk, but was out of sorts due to low blood sugar.
The case is pending.
Over the next few days, Schwab said he is taking an inventory of his belongings and providing police with a list of missing items. He said he is cooperating with police in the investigation.
The total damages Schwab suffered isn’t yet known.
“I would be happy to offer a reward to anyone with information about this,” he said.
Officer Jim Burr said police are taking the incident seriously due to the combination of burglary and vandalism along with its location — a highly visible spot on Quaker Farms Road.
“This happened right along a main road,” he said. “We usually don’t have incidents like this.”
Police are asking anyone with information about the incident to call the Oxford Police Department at (203) 888‑4353.
