Police in Sylva, North Carolina, announced this week that they had tracked down arrested two men suspected in the vandalism early Saturday of the Sylva police department building. Detective Aimee Sumner said that a police sergeant discovered the glass front door of the building had been broken; a flag, flagpole and "Authorized Vehicles Only" sign stolen; and cake smeared on the building. The investigative squad sprang into action.
- Detectives followed a trail of cake crumbs from the police department several blocks east to a cake box lid on Main Street. This cake box was believed to be implicated in the assault, which detectives theorized had been carried out with an ICD (improvised cake device).
- The cake box lid had been left outside a restaurant.
- Further investigation revealed that a birthday party had taken place in that restaurant, and that the birthday party in question had involved cake.
- It had also involved alcohol.
- After extensive waterboarding of certain party attendees, police learned that two men had left the party early Saturday morning, taking a cake with them. Police now believed this was the cake used in the assault.
- Based on tips gleaned from the restaurant investigation, a team of local and county police surrounded a house on Hampton Street where they believed the assailants had taken refuge.
- Moving onto the porch, one or more of these police officers opened the door.
- Inside were the stolen items and two white males, Zachary Hughes and Shawn Bubacz. The U.S. flag had been soaked in motor oil.
- Detective Sumner related the conclusive evidence that led to the arrest: "Both the males had cake icing on them that matched the icing on the door here at the police department. Both subjects had been drinking."
Based on the positive icing match and other circumstantial evidence, Hughes and Bubacz were arrested and charged with all the stuff you get charged with if you deface an American flag that you stole from a police station in North Carolina that you also vandalized. They have a court date February 6.
