TOLEDO, Ohio — A quiet Baker Street neighborhood was shaken in the early hours when a Molotov cocktail was reportedly thrown at a vehicle parked in front of a home, narrowly missing the car and causing minor damage.
Michael Larcom, a resident of the street, said he was awakened by the sound of breaking glass and a small fire. Upon reviewing footage from his security cameras, Larcom saw what he believes was an incendiary device hurled at the car.
“The explosive just barely missed the vehicle,” Larcom said. “I’m surprised it didn’t catch that truck on fire.”
Larcom suspects the attack was targeted and motivated by retaliation. He previously reported a crime involving an ex-girlfriend and drugs to Crime Stoppers and believes this incident may be connected. He also recognized the vehicle seen circling the neighborhood multiple times on the security footage as one linked to those he had reported.
“It looks exactly like the vehicle. I made a call on them and I think that they done that because I called on them,” Larcom stated.
After the attack, Larcom recovered fragments of the bottle used in the attack, noting a strong smell of gasoline. He handed over the evidence to a fire marshal who is now investigating the incident.
The targeted vehicle does not belong to Larcom but to a neighbor who wished to remain anonymous. The neighbor said they were awakened by the sound of glass breaking and saw flames outside.
“I was sleeping and I woke up. I came out here and seen some flames. The bottle was lying right there by that telephone pole,” the neighbor said.
Authorities are continuing their investigation and urge anyone with information related to the incident to contact Crime Stoppers at (419) 255-1111.