A Water Street restaurant remains closed more than 10 days after it was reported to have been vandalized during an overnight break-in.

A sign hanging in the window Tuesday at Hallowell House of Pizza announced the restaurant was closed because of vandalism and directed people to the business’ Facebook page for more information. A posting on that page from Sept. 11, the day the vandalism was discovered, urges people to “keep checking back to see when we will be able to reopen.”

“We regretfully announced that we will be closed for the next few days due to an individual, or individuals, who broke into our restaurant and vandalized the whole place last night, early this morning,” the Facebook post reads.

Attempts Tuesday to reach the restaurant owner, Steve Mihalakis, were unsuccessful.

Hallowell police Chief Eric Nason said someone broke into the restaurant by pushing through a window screen sometime between 10 p.m. Sept. 10 and 7 a.m. Sept. 11. Once inside, the burglars spray-painted walls and the floor in the dining area and cut seats with a knife. The burglars submerged a telephone and desktop computer in water, Nason said, and they stole cash from a storage box.

Nason said police continue to look for those responsible.

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“We’re following up on a couple of different things as we speak,” Nason said. “We’ll see where that leads us.”

Nason said the elements of the crime, including the time spent inside and the spray-painted words indicating the burglar was angry, indicate that the business was targeted rather than the victim of a random attack.

“Based on the information, it was an attack on the business,” Nason said. “It was very specific to the business.”

Nason asked that anyone who has information on the break-in or noticed suspicious activity that evening call police at 623-3131.


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