Break-In At Miracle League Field, I-470 Ballfields Being Investigated
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WHEELING - A break-in early Monday morning at the J.B. Chambers I-470 Complex left the Miracle League Field concession stand a mess, but larger items taken were later found close by, according to Lorraine McCardle, president of the Miracle League for the Ohio Valley.
According to McCardle, the incident probably happened at about 3 a.m. Monday.
"They used a crowbar to get into the doors of the concession area and into the storage area where we store the amp and speaker system," she said. "They took them, then they took one of the spritzers that spritzes out water.
"But we found them. I guess they were too heavy. They left them over the hill and apparently were going to come back for them."
The items were found on the hillside that leads to the skate park and to the Hil-Dar neighborhood, McCardle reported.
"They went to the door at the back of the building and pried it open," she continued. "They trashed the concession area. Everything was pulled out. They took some of the food - a new box of candy, Gatorade, a 36-pack of Pepsi - but we found them."
The intruders opened all the doors at the concession stands and took cleaning supplies, but all were found.
McCardle suspects the organization might have lost some chips and hot dogs that were in the refrigerator.
The suspects also used a crowbar to break into the men's restroom. There was nothing in the restrooms, but the doors were ruined, she reported
City of Wheeling workers replaced the doors with new ones on Monday, according to McCardle.
She hasn't tried the speaker system yet to make certain it still works.
"It's heartbreaking. I don't feel I can leave anything of value there because somebody is going to get in," she said. "These kids don't deserve this. This is something they enjoy doing."
Other areas at the J.B. Chambers I-470 Complex experienced break-ins, as well, according to Philip Stahl, public information officer for the city of Wheeling.
"Our officers did go up there and found multiple doors on several structures had been pried open," he said. "There were locks off some of the doors."
He added that there are no suspects yet, and that the incident is still under investigation.