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Amherstburg Mayor Aldo DiCarlo after over six years at the helm understands politics can involve some controversial decisions, but having his personal space violated overnight on Friday left him shocked.
As he prepared to go for a drive with his wife early Saturday morning, DiCarlo was stunned to discover all four tires on his vehicle had been slashed in what he believes was a politically-motivated incident.
Upsetting him further was to learn how the four tires on his daughter’s vehicle had also been punctured.
“You like to believe your home is a safe space — private property, no matter what else is going on in life,” he said on Saturday.
“What hurts the most is how I have had great support from my family over the years. They have endured a lot reading things about me and vitriol on social media. Something like this doesn’t just affect the one they were after, but our entire household.
“My daughter’s car was vandalized and what did she ever do to anyone?”
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His daughter took to Facebook on Saturday detailing how she was “angry and devastated” about the incident.
“This wasn’t some kid saying ‘let’s slash some tires,’” she posted. “Our house was the only one targeted. This was an adult who said ‘let’s slash the mayor’s tires.’ And not only his, but mine. So congratulations, you put a 25-year-old woman’s car, a student, working part-time to pay for school, out of commission.”
DiCarlo, who resides with his wife and three adult children, wasn’t exactly certain what may have prompted the attack on his family vehicles, but guessed it may be in connection with recent council decisions pertaining to local parks and the town’s green space.
“There are a lot of politics going on right now about the parks, but I have had to declare a conflict of interest and did not even vote on it,” he said of the latest council decisions. “If that’s what it was, the person they went after didn’t have anything to do with the decision.
“What happened is unfortunate under any circumstances, but given the actual circumstances it is preposterous.”
Windsor police, whose services include Amherstburg, were called to the the mayor’s home on Saturday.
“All we can say at this time is there was a call for service involving property damage and Windsor police are investigating,” said Staff Sgt. Duke Ing.
DiCarlo’s daughter further added in her online post that regardless of anyone’s political views: “To make an entire household feel unsafe and to destroy the property of someone just because you don’t like what he’s doing in office is absurd.
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“Say what you will about my dad, but he is a kind, incredible, supportive father and our family is endlessly proud of the amazing things he has done for this town and for us. You are allowed to disagree with what he does as mayor. That’s politics, of course, people can disagree. But it is illegal and immoral to slash a man’s and his daughter’s tires because you are angry.”
There are dozens of municipal politicians in the Windsor and Essex County area, so seeing his home and possessions vandalized has left DiCarlo uneasy for the days ahead.
“It gives me concern not just for myself, but other (local politicians),” he said. “There is a lot of misinformation on social media these days to incite this type of activity. That is extremely unfortunate. Someone doing something like this is not just to us — but greatly affects family members that also live in the home.
“I still believe I’m the mayor of a great town, but clearly there are people here who don’t have great intentions.”
dbattagello@postmedia.com
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