No injuries after vandals loosen nuts on car tires

RCMP are searching for suspects after someone loosened the lug nuts on wheels of two vehicles in a Nanaimo, B.C., parking lot, prompting a close call for one driver.

A statement issued by police says it happened Wednesday as the vehicles were parked in a lot near a stadium on Nanaimo's west side.

No one was hurt when the rear passenger-side tire of a 2008 Dodge Caliber came off as the teen driver headed home after leaving the parking lot.

Police say the driver felt a strong vibration and was just bringing his car to a stop when he saw the wheel roll into a nearby park.

Const. Gary O'Brien says the teen alerted his friends and may have averted a similar incident because a 17-year-old whose pickup was parked in the same lot received the message and before driving off, he found the lug nuts on a rear tire had also been loosened.

O'Brien says RCMP want to speak to anyone else who was the victim of similar vandalism but has not yet made a police report.

“These were extremely dangerous and malicious acts of vandalism that could have had tragic consequences," O'Brien says in the statement.