Alleged Los Angeles tree hacker charged with 8 counts of felony vandalism

The man accused of hacking down more than 10 trees with a chainsaw in downtown Los Angeles and nearby areas has been charged with eight counts of felony vandalism.

Samuel Patrick Groft, 44, was arrested Tuesday for the alleged crimes and appeared in court Thursday afternoon. He pleaded not guilty. 

Police began searching for the suspect after rows of trees lining streets throughout the downtown area were mysteriously cut down over the weekend. 

Surveillance footage revealed an alleged suspect, who could be seen wearing all black and riding a BMX-style bike. 

Los Angeles Police Department detectives said on Wednesday that 11 trees were discovered chopped down with a chainsaw in the downtown Los Angeles community, the Westlake District as well as Glassell Park.

Detective Robert Gutierrez said the loss so far is at $347,000, and that includes the value of eight of the hacked trees -- the other three have not been calculated for value yet. 

Police said they had prior contacts with Groft, who has a criminal record and is homeless.  "We went to one of the locations over at Custer and Sunset. Once we got there, we found him there with the evidence, the same clothing, bicycle and the chainsaw,"  Detective Michael Pineda said.

City work crews could be seen removing the debris on Monday, and the mayor's office said that work was already underway to replace the damaged trees. 

At a Thursday news conference Los Angeles Councilmember Ysabel Jurado announced that the city is replacing the chopped trees two to one. For every hacked tree, two will go in its place. 

"For many of our downtown LA residents, the public right-of-way is their front yard, it is their backyard – so the loss of these trees is personal," Jurado said. 

The motion will come before the council's Public Works and Public Safety committees.