WILKES-BARRE — A man from Scranton had an excuse as to why he allegedly smashed windows at the U.S. Post Office and a business on South Main Street Thursday night.
Ronald Shoemaker, 41, of Belvedere Drive, claimed he was “bored” and decided to “play with rocks,” according to court records.
Shoemaker was arraigned Friday by District Judge Rick Cronauer in Luzerne County Central Court on charges of criminal mischief, institutional vandalism and disorderly conduct. He was jailed at the county correctional facility for lack of $10,000 bail.
An officer was flagged down by a person claiming a man wearing a black hooded sweatshirt was causing a disturbance outside the post office on South Main Street just before 6 p.m.
The officer spotted the man, identified as Shoemaker, who matched the description. A construction worker working at a site near the post office told the officer Shoemaker was smashing windows with rocks, according to the criminal complaint.
Shoemaker approached the officer claiming he was “bored” and “playing with rocks,” the complaint says.
Shoemaker claimed the damage to the windows were an accident.
When the officer asked why a 41-year-old man would play with rocks, Shoemaker had no response.
Police in the complaint reported three large windows at the post office and a window at Labor Ready, a private business across the street from the post office, were smashed.