Suffolk County Communities Under Siege After Bat-Wielding Vandals Smash Cars, Home Windows

EAST NORTHPORT, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- Some homeowners in Suffolk County, Long Island were fearful Sunday evening after a terrifying crime spree.

Earlier in the day, a group of vandals went from property to property using bats to smash cars and the windows of some homes.

Carol Pagnotta's dining room window was smashed by one of the masked suspects.

"We heard a crash at 1:12 in the morning," she told CBS2's Dave Carlin. "My granddaughter ran up the stairs panicking."

Pagnotta's home security system was triggered by a motion detector, which is why the suspect was only captured on camera running away.

In the upper part of the security screen, two accomplices are seen on Udell Way, with a driver still at the wheel of a light-colored SUV. Police believe they're looking for a quartet of suspects who have incited fear and costly damage to multiple homes and cars in East Northport and Commack.

"I don't know it must be kids who think it's funny, but it's not," East Northport resident Caroline Hogan said, "it's expensive."

Home surveillance from a different home shows a shadowy figure exit an SUV to bash away at a white Mercedes. A second camera angle for the same system shows the vehicle leaving the neighborhood. The owner of the Mercedes didn't wish to talk about what happened.

Several others who woke up to damaged property say they're feeling mostly scared, but also angry that they have to file claims. They add the suspects cost them not only money, but peace of mind.

"They bashed in the side view, they bashed in the windshield," car owner James Miola said. "They did a number on it."

Miola says he's unable to drive his busted Honda.

"Luckily I have a long weekend from work because of the holiday, it buys me a little time," he said. "Maybe I will have to carpool next week."

Suffolk Police continue to search the many streets where the vandals struck in hopes of finding surveillance video.