DOCUMENT: Bizarre, Crime

Man In TV Smash Rampage

Baseball bat vandal destroys 29 flat-panel sets at Walmart

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Man Busted In TV Smash Rampage

FEBRUARY 11--Meet Westley Strellis.

For unknown reasons, the Georgia man yesterday afternoon smashed 29 flat-screen televisions during a rampage at a Walmart in suburban Atlanta. After grabbing an Easton baseball bat from the store's sporting goods section, the 23-year-old Strellis strolled up an electronics department aisle bashing the TVs, according to a Lilburn Police Department report.

Cops sought to question Strellis following his arrest, but he cited his Fifth Amendment right to not answer questions, so the motive for his vandalism--which was captured on a store surveillance camera--is unknown. The police report notes that the suspect was carrying a bottle of Effexor XR, a prescription medicine Strellis said, "treats depression."

The destroyed televisions are valued at about $22,887, though Strellis's spree caused additional damage to Walmart shelves, according to cops. Strellis, pictured in the mug shot at left, was booked into the Gwinnett County jail and charged with 29 counts of criminal damage to property. (3 pages)