Bethel police said Monday that vandals had destroyed preschool classrooms and cars belonging to the Lower Kuskokwim School District.
Bethel Police Chief Andre Achee said the vandals broke into Mikelnguut Elitnaurviat Elementary School (also known as the M.E. School) over the weekend and damaged classroom property and cars parked nearby at the district office.
He said police have tentatively identified several suspects, but declined to provide further information on their identities Monday night.
"The investigation is continuing," he said. He said he expected police to have an update Tuesday.
Thirty-year-old Teresa Evans of Bethel said she got a call from her daughter's preschool around 11:30 p.m. Sunday. They said she should keep her daughter at home until further notice because vandals had trashed her school.
Evans' 4-year-old daughter, Alyssa, had just started attending the preschool Thursday. Bethel schools opened last week. Evans said photographs of her daughter's vandalized classroom appeared on Facebook Monday.
"It was unrecognizable," she said. "It was just trashed everywhere."
KYUK reported that preliminary estimates of the damage done to the preschool totaled at least $50,000. The damage to the 13 school district cars exceeded $50,000.
LKSD Superintendent Dan Walker told KYUK that it appeared people had thrown rocks at the cars. Inside the preschool, some computers were missing and some were thrown onto the floor. Water was running, toilets were clogged and several smart boards were torn off the walls, he said.