Schools closed, businesses shuttered, and five law enforcement agencies- including the FBI- descended on a town of about 1,300 people to find him.
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A shelter-in-place order that kept residents of a small Breckinridge County city indoors for hours has come to an end. Irvington Police confirmed Thursday morning that 45-year-old Lester Lamont Perks, the man accused of a vandalism spree and shooting at a police officer, is now in custody.
The arrest brings a close to a tense 24 hours for the city, which began early Wednesday when Irvington Police were dispatched to reports of widespread vandalism across town.
A hammer, a hunt, and a city on lockdown
According to police, Perks used a claw hammer to smash windshields on vehicles belonging to the police department, fire department and post office, along with a number of privately owned cars. Officers said the damage stretched across town, from the north side of the railroad tracks to apartments near US 60, and that a First State Bank ATM was also hit.
By the time investigators had finished counting Wednesday, they estimated 10 to 12 vehicles had windshield damage, in addition to the damage to emergency vehicles. Police believe most of the vandalism happened before daylight, with one report placing Perks on a resident's porch as early as 3:30 a.m.
What started as a vandalism call turned considerably more dangerous later Wednesday, when the Breckinridge County Sheriff's Office reported that an Irvington police officer had been shot at while on patrol near Eva Carmen, close to Lon Dowell Road and North Second Street. The shooter ran and was believed to be armed with a handgun, according to the sheriff's office, which urged residents to stay out of the area, lock their doors and remain indoors as law enforcement flooded the city limits.
Out of what the mayor called "an abundance of caution," city leaders issued a shelter-in-place order and asked residents to stay inside and rely only on official updates rather than rumors or social media. Irvington City Schools closed for the day, and several nearby businesses shut down as well.
"The well-being of the people in Irvington will always be a top priority for anyone that's elected or appointed in our city," the mayor told reporters Wednesday, adding that he did not want to speculate on details that hadn't been confirmed by investigators.
A multi-agency search
Because Perks was still considered dangerous and on foot, Irvington police were joined by the Hardinsburg Police Department, the Breckinridge County Sheriff's Office, Kentucky State Police, the Hardin County Sheriff's Office and the FBI in the search.
Investigators said Perks was known to the community and had lived in Irvington for some time. He had previously been arrested for damaging the police department, officers said, though not on this scale. At one point Wednesday, officers searched his mother's house after a resident reported the front door standing partly open- but he wasn't there.
Police said they were unaware of a motive and stressed that, to their knowledge, the claw hammer was the only weapon involved. No injuries were reported.
"You know, the vandalism to any city equipment, city property can be replaced, but people cannot," one official said during the press conference. "So I'm very thankful for that."
What comes next
Online records show Perks now faces multiple charges, including wanton endangerment and attempted murder of a police officer. He has a court date set for September 22nd.
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