The new week got off to a rough start when many residents on Butler’s west side awoke to find tires slashed on their vehicles.

At least 15 vehicles were targeted in the vandalism spree.

“But there could be more,” said Butler police Capt. David Dalcamo.

Officers were busy beginning late Sunday night taking reports and gathering evidence in the crime spread out over several blocks encompassing West New Castle and Dumbaugh streets, and Snyder, Ridge North Sixth and American avenues.

Dalcamo said the first call came in at 11:40 p.m. Sunday.

The caller told officers that he went outside his apartment and discovered one of his tires had been cut.

He searched the neighborhood to try and catch the vandal or vandals in the act and instead found more slashed tires on several other vehicles.

Officers got there and canvassed the area. Their first count of vandalized vehicles was six. But that number would grow.

At 2 a.m. today, police got another call, this one from a man reporting tires on his vehicle and still others had been slashed.

Police searched a second time and tallied a new total of victims — 15.

All of the vehicles had one tire slashed, Dalcamo said. The combined estimated damage was $2,172, the report said.

Investigators are asking for residents in the area who have surveillance video at their homes to contact police at 724-287-7742.