PRESQUE ISLE – A retired Maple Street couple is without their main means of transportation because of what police are calling a bizarre act of vandalism.

The couple, who preferred to remain anonymous because of fear of retaliation, discovered Wednesday afternoon that their white car, including windows and chrome, had been spray-painted black. Only a few areas were left untouched on the vehicle.

“I almost had a heart attack,” the owner, who found the car, said Thursday. “I noticed all of a sudden that I had a black car.”

The 1994 Buick sedan, which bears a Purple Heart recipient license plate, was vandalized between Monday and Wednesday, Detective Wayne Selfridge of the Presque Isle Police Department said Thursday. Police said there was no forced entry into the garage where the vehicle was parked.

Selfridge said the husband and wife were away from home at the time of the incident and do not use their car on a regular basis.

According to the primary investigator, Sgt. Bill Campbell of the Presque Isle Police Department, police have not determined a motive in the incident. The case is being considered “strictly a random act of property damage.”

“The suspect or suspects walked into these folks’ unlocked garage with, most likely, a few cans of black spray paint and spray-painted the entire car – the windows, everything,” Campbell said Thursday.

The investigator said it would have taken one person a substantial amount of time to put a coat of black paint on the car.

“It’s just beyond imagination as to what enjoyment this person or persons got out of destroying these folks’ vehicle,” Campbell said. “It makes absolutely no sense.”

While the couple awaits a damage estimate from their insurance company, they are relying on their 1987 pickup truck for transportation, but they said they couldn’t use it for driving long distances.

They also said they have also lost a sense of security because of the incident.

“I’m afraid to go to sleep at night,” the wife said. “I’m very worried about who’s coming around our building.”

Campbell said the case is under investigation.

“We would appreciate any help the public could give in solving this senseless crime,” he said. “It’s a shame that someone would treat seniors in our community in such a horrific manner.”