CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — Neighbors in Cambridge are calling one man the real-life Grinch.
William Kleschinsky, 27, of Bedford was arrested after police say he went on a drunken car-wrecking rampage along Sciarappa Street.
Authorities say Kleschinsky was drunk on Friday night when he walked down the street punching at least 24 cars stretching several blocks, breaking one side view mirror after the other.
"I was like, 'Oh my god someone hit me in the middle of the night,'" said Sam Loos, whose car was damaged. "It’s definitely not the spirit of Christmas, unfortunately he had a little too much fun."
Kleschinsky, who is being charged with 24 counts of malicious damage to a motor vehicle, faced a judge on Monday.
Several neighbors in the area say they now have to pay hundreds of dollars out of pocket to fix the damage. They say this headache and financial burden couldn't come at a worse time this year.
"It’s pretty frustrating, but I guess it makes me feel a little bit better that I wasn’t alone," said Loos.
"We have gifts we have to get, we have a big family, we have secret Santa and Yankee swap we need money for, not fixing the car," said Mystique Cavanaugh, whose car was also damaged.
Police caught up with Kleschinsky just minutes after his vandalism spree. The key that led them to identifying him was not only his bloodied hand but also the Santa hat hanging from his pocket that had been described by witnesses.
According to police, he told officers he had been walking from Somerville through Cambridge and claimed he was upset because he couldn’t find an Uber to pick him up.
"I get it, you had a hard time, you were drunk you couldn’t get what you wanted but that doesn’t mean you go around destroying people’s property," said Cavanaugh.
Kleschinsky paid off his $300 bail, which is a tough pill to swallow for those whose cars he damaged, considering they're each stuck paying at least that much to fix what police say Kleschinsky allegedly did.