KALAMAZOO, MI (WKZO AM/FM) – A 46-year-old man arrested Thursday after allegedly going on a vandalism spree in downtown Kalamazoo was arraigned Friday.
The Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety says Andrew Anthony Blackmun ten counts of malicious destruction of property valued between $1,000 and $20,000, and one count of malicious destruction of property valued between $200 and $1,000. His bond was set at $5,000 cash or surety.
Shortly after 7:00 a.m. KDPS officers responded to a report of a broken storefront window in the 200 block of South Kalamazoo Mall. Officers discovered damage at nearby businesses and quickly determined the incident was not isolated.
As officers canvassed the downtown area, they located additional broken windows between Park Street and the 300 block of East Michigan Avenue. In total, approximately seven businesses and nonprofit organizations were affected. Preliminary damage estimates exceed $10,000.
Investigators were able to review their FUSUS camera system footage in real time, confirming the suspect’s direction of travel and relay that information directly to officers in the field.
KDPS says because of the immediate access to camera footage, officers were able to quickly locate and arrest Blackmun on East Michigan Avenue near Kalamazoo Mall.
The Fusus system allows public safety agencies to tie together public and private video and data sources and deliver them via a cloud-based platform. In Kalamazoo, the program is called CONNECT KALAMAZOO.
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