BAKERSFIELD, Calif.(KBAK/KBFX) — Employees arriving at Life FM around 9 a.m. Monday found the Christian radio station’s glass front door shattered, apparently by a rock thrown through it.
“You could tell something had been smashed, either thrown through or hit the door. And so yeah, after opening it up and finding the glass, found a rock that had been thrown through,” said Matt Pelishek, the station’s program director.
Pelishek said staff checked the building to make sure nothing was taken or damaged inside. The station contacted Bakersfield police and the Kern County Sheriff’s Office. At the time of the interview, authorities had not yet arrived to complete a report, and the motive remained unknown.
“It brings questions,” Pelishek said. “Is this a one off” “or is it connected to something else?”
The vandalism comes amid recent violence involving local media. Life FM employee and Eyewitness News morning forecaster and anchor Aaron Perlman said Bakersfield police told him he may have been the intended target of the shooting at the KBAK/KBFX studio this month. Bakersfield police have not confirmed any connection between the two cases.
After Life FM posted a photo of the damage, Pelishek said community members quickly reached out with messages of support.
“So many people were like, oh, I can’t believe it. Oh, we love you guys. Why would they do?” Pelishek said.
The incident also comes as other vandalism has been reported in recent months, including air conditioning unit vandalism and theft, spray painting on a metal roll-up door at the GET bus terminal, and a metal pipe thrown through a vehicle’s rear windshield. A request for comment was sent to Bakersfield police to ask whether vandalism trends have changed in recent months, but no response had been received.
Pelishek said Life FM has dealt with minor exterior damage before, sometimes involving people coming and going in the area, but said this incident was different.
“But not this direct of an impact, not this intentional of an act,” he said.
Pelishek said the station plans to review surveillance footage, complete repairs, consider additional security measures and continue its mission.
“To be able to still step into the studio, play the songs that remind them that they’re loved, remind people that we’re in a community that supports each other, that I think gives us excitement to keep going,” Pelishek said.