HOMERVILLE, Ohio — The Medina County Sheriff’s Office is investigating possible hate crimes against the Amish in Homerville.
Vandals are allegedly targeting their homes and businesses at night, with one residence getting hit three times.
Detective Sergeant Larry Covy says the sheriff's office has received 14 calls between June and August of this year, reporting that people are throwing odd objects, including railroad spikes, water bottles filled with rocks, pop cans and unopened tuna cans at Amish properties.
“They're throwing them through windows, throwing them hitting the house, breaking siding.” says Covy. “They've damaged a couple of roofs from those items, just kind of odd, weird, things. Our biggest fear is that at some point. someone's going to get hurt with this, especially throwing the railroad spikes through windows. If there's a small child, even an adult gets hit with one of those things, it can cause some damage.”
The Medina County Sheriff’s Office is looking at these acts of vandalism as hate crimes. They occurred in a large square rural block encompassing Firestone Rd, Black River School Rd, Camp Rd, and SR 301.
The 14 calls they received reporting what happened have turned into six reports.
Covy says he believes the Amish are being targeted because of their gracious ways.
“They're not good victims, because they very much believe in that, ‘It's no big deal. It's not up to us to judge,’ so people take advantage of that," he adds.
Covy also says it is hard to get a description of a suspect or suspects because there are no ring cameras in the area due to Amish beliefs.
Right now, the only tip authorities have from witnesses is that they report seeing a four-door dark-colored sedan when the crimes occurred.
According to Covy, whomever is committing these misdemeanor crimes can face up to a $1,000 fine and 180 days in jail.
Anyone with information about these crimes can call the Medina County Sheriff’s Office Detective Bureau at 330-725-9116.