UPDATE: A body shop in Seffner has reached out to a Brandon woman to help her fix the side of her car after a vandal poured acid on her 2002 Ford Explorer that was parked outside a Kmart in Brandon.
Original Story:
Glenda Banfield said she was in the store for about an hour when she came out to find the paint on her car bubbling.
"My paint was down to the metal," she said, "I rubbed my hand down over it and it just came off in flakes."
Banfield was parked in a disabled parking space in the front row towards the entrance of the store.
"I wish I would have just stayed home," said Banfield.
Banfield, who lives on disability, is on a fixed-income and took the car in for a repair estimate, "they said it would be at least $1,500."
Precision Collision & Auto Painting off US Highway 92 in Seffner tells ABC Action News they have offered to fix the acid that was poured along the side of her car.
The owner telling us they asked Banfield to bring the car into the shop first thing Monday morning.
The woman who is struggling with health issues says that type of repair is not in her budget.
As a result of the vandalism, the Brandon woman posted a sign on the outside of her car that says '''Tis the season," and Merry Christmas.
Banfield tells us she made a report with the Hillsborough County Sheriffs Office on Tuesday right after it happened.
"All I can say is if they don't catch the guy, I hope he has a really horrible Christmas," she said.
Banfield said she rarely leaves her home, and she just wanted to get out of the house for a bit on Tuesday.
"This has really impacted me in a bad way," she said, "but I don't want to lose my faith in people."
The Kmart off Brandon Boulevard recently announced it will soon be closing.
Banfield hopes someone may have either been a witness, or knows something about this crime and will call police immediately.
