By Jorge Casuso

August 20, 2024 -- A convicted felon has been charged in connection with a vandalism spree that disabled more than 300 City-owned water meters over the span of several weeks, police officials said Tuesday.

Richard Martin, 51, was arrested last Tuesday after investigators served a search warrant at the Santa Monica residence where he lives with his parents.

Evidence connecting Martin to as many as 304 vandalism incidents -- which caused an estimated $45,000 in damages -- was collected at the residence, police officials said.

The Los Angeles County District Attorney has charged Martin with felony vandalism

"We believe he is responsible for all 304 incidents, each of them causing $100-$150 in damage," Police Department spokesperson Lt. Erika Aklufi said in an email.

"It would be impossible to prove all 304 beyond a reasonable doubt," Aklufi said. "As such, the DA is prosecuting him on one charge of felony vandalism encompassing all the damaged meters."

Police have not established a motive, she said. "We don’t know why he was doing it."

The incident that led to Martin's arrest took place on June 5, when officers responded to a multi-unit residential complex in the 2100 block of Ocean Park Blvd regarding a vandalism incident, police officials said.

"The owner of the buildings noticed the wires to his sprinkler system control box had been cut," Aklufi wrote in a press release Tuesday.

The owner checked recordings from the building's external cameras and found that at around 8 p.m. on May 31, "a male suspect tampered with the sprinkler box," Aklufi wrote.

The suspect then "jumped over the gate from the building into the alley, opened the city water meter box, and cut the wires inside," she said. He then walked east in the alley south of Ocean Park Boulevard.

Officers canvassed the alley and located a total of seven other city-owned water meters that had been vandalized, Aklufi said.

In mid-July, the City of Santa Monica Water Resources administrator reported that a total of 304 water meters "had their wires cut over the span of several weeks and required replacement."

Most of the damaged meters were in an area bordered by 14th Street to 25th Street and from the I-10 Freeway to Ashland Avenue.

"There was an additional cluster of damaged meters on the east end of the city between Ocean Park Boulevard and Pico Boulevard," Aklufi said.

Police obtained additional surveillance footage of the subject leading to his arrest last Tuesday.

Martin has prior criminal convictions for assault with a deadly weapon and felony elder abuse stemming from a 2013 incident in Santa Monica, Aklufi said.

He was convicted in a separate Santa Monica incident for being a felon in possession of a firearm.

In the 2013 case, Martin pleaded no contest to the charge of assault with a deadly weapon, Aklufi said. The elder abuse charge was filed and dismissed during the plea.

Anyone with information about this incident or individual should email Detective Hernandez at Esteban.Hernandez@santamonica.gov.