Nearly a dozen vehicles in the parking lot of the Play Academy at 1901 S Hwy 183 in Leander have had their tires punctured over the past few days by handmade, laser-cut spikes scattered across the pavement, according to police. Parents dropping their children off at the daycare ran over the devices, causing significant damage to their cars.
Leander police identified the objects as caltrops — sharp metal devices engineered so that, no matter how they land, a point always faces upward, as reported by FOX 7 Austin. Investigators said the placement of the spikes was intentional and dangerous, a characterization that underscores how deliberately the devices were designed to cause harm rather than appear as random road debris.
Spikes Found Over Several Days at Daycare Lot
The vehicle damage happened over the past several days, per police, rather than in a single incident. That timeline suggests whoever placed the caltrops returned to the lot more than once, though no suspect, arrest, or motive has been identified. Police have not released information about surveillance footage or forensic evidence tied to the case.
Leander police are asking anyone with information to come forward. Those with tips can reach Detective Hubbs at [email protected] or by phone at (512) 528-2805.
Similar Devices Have Turned Up Elsewhere
Caltrops are not unheard of outside Leander. In Erie, Pennsylvania, a running group discovered several of the spiked devices scattered across the West Erie Plaza parking lot, and a couple of people who saw a related Facebook post said they had found caltrops stuck in their own tires in the week or two before that, according to WJET/WFXP. No one in that running group was injured while passing through the area.
There is no evidence linking the Erie case to what happened in Leander. Caltrops have also surfaced in Texas in a very different context: a Small Wars Journal account describes the Texas Department of Public Safety logging 80 caltrop incidents since 2008 involving tire-deflation spikes used against law-enforcement vehicles, with the last reported cartel-linked use in the state occurring in Sullivan City in March 2011, when 20 to 30 cars suffered punctured tires. Those historical incidents, detailed by Small Wars Journal, involved a distinct pattern of targeting police and are not presented as connected to the Play Academy incidents.
For now, Leander police are treating the parking-lot spikes as a standalone case centered on the daycare property on Hwy 183. The department's request for tips remains the only avenue investigators have publicly outlined as they try to determine who scattered the devices and why.
