A woman attending Chicago’s Riot Fest claimed her car was set on fire after refusing to pay for parking on a public street.
Gayle Kamberos went to the opening night of the punk and grunge festival on Friday and found a parking spot on Albany Avenue. But when she pulled up, the Chicago resident said a man demanded $20 to park. She refused and said the man then threatened to set fire to her car.
“There was a gentleman who ran up to me and said, ‘Ma’am it’s $20 for the space,’ and I said, ‘There’s no dibs here,’ and he said, ‘I’m going to set your car on fire, I’ I’m going to set your car on fire’ and I said, ‘yeah, okay’.”
After the festival she returned to find her Fiat 500 burnt and totaled. Earlier, Kamberos took a photo of the man she said confronted her when she pulled up to the scene.
Kamberos said she was furious because her car was destroyed, and she felt the arson was not being taken seriously by Riot Fest organizers.
“In the back of my mind I thought maybe he’s going to key my car, maybe he’s going to slash my tires,” she said. “I didn’t expect to go out to an arson… I didn’t, I didn’t think he would do it for real. It is. It’s an extreme threat.”
Some of her belongings were stolen from the vehicle, the Chicagoan said.
No arrests had been made as of Saturday night.
Chicago police said no other arsons have been reported nearby. An investigation was still ongoing.