Santa Maria Farm Company Offers Reward For Vandalism

Flattened tires, slashed conveyor belts and electrical wires are what a Santa Maria farming company faced two days after returning to work from the Thanksgiving holiday.

OSR Enterprises said it wants to know why someone would vandalize its farm equipment, leaving the company thousands of dollars in the hole.

Cameron Anderson manages the company that grows celery and cauliflower on the Central Coast. He said when he came to work Tuesday morning, his workers found three large machines used to cut and pack celery sticks destroyed.

The company said it suffered an estimated $70,000 in damages to its equipment.

Anderson told KCOY/KEYT’s Cory James they “had 80 people who didn’t get paid for two complete days of work,” because of the vandalism.

Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office investigators said this case of farm vandalism is different than any they have ever seen before.

Deputy Sheriff John McCarthy said it is definitely felony vandalism and added that “you can also throw in grand theft due to the loss of crops and the employees [who] weren’t able to be paid.”

OSR Enterprises is offering a $2,500 reward to anyone who can help the Sheriff’s Office make an arrest.