Man accused of taking a chainsaw to 13 trees in LA appears in court

LOS ANGELES (CN) — A dayslong rampage that felled 12 trees and maimed another in Los Angeles began innocently enough, with a trip to Harbor Freight.

At a preliminary hearing on Wednesday, an LAPD detective testified that security camera footage showed a man walking into the hardware store in the Cypress Park neighborhood of Los Angeles wearing black clothes and a backwards baseball cap reading “Tijuana,” a beach cruiser bicycle in tow. He purchased a tarp, a pair of black work gloves and an electric chainsaw. The receipt, which detectives would later obtain a copy of, reveal the man’s name: Samuel Groft.

Groft walked out of the store, straight to a nearby gas station, where he sawed a single limb off a tree. He then left the scene.

The tree spree escalated quickly. Another detective testified that Groft appeared the next day in downtown LA and sawed down three juniper trees “in same manner and fashion.” They were, the detective said, “quite expensive,” worth around $10,000 a piece. Surveillance footage showed the freelance lumberjack to be a man wearing black gloves and walking with a bicycle.

Groft, 44, faced eight counts of felony vandalism and three more counts were added Wednesday, accounting for the damage of all 13 trees. The attacks, which took place over the course of a little more than a week, sparked widespread outrage online — one Reddit commenter called it an “evil thoughtless act of destruction.” It even had elected officials weighing in. Mayor Karen Bass called the crime “truly beyond comprehension,” and a City Council member introduced a motion to increase fines for anyone who injures a tree.

“What took years to grow only took minutes to destroy,” District Attorney Nathan Hochman said in a written statement when Groft was charged. “Trees not only provide shade and comfort but nourish those who live and work in our communities.”

If convicted of all counts, Groft faces up to 15 years in state prison. He has pleaded not guilty, and is being held in lieu of $350,000 in bail. He appeared in court on Wednesday, calmly writing with a small pencil.

According to the Los Angeles Times, Groft has lengthy criminal record, including convictions for assault with a deadly weapon, driving under the influence, felony vandalism and a hit-and-run. He was arrested on Earth Day at a homeless encampment with an electric chainsaw in his possession. In 2023, he told a student journalist from Cal State LA that he had completed a mental health court diversion program, and spent several years living on the street. A LinkedIn account appeared to belong to Groft included a 2017 letter reading, “I have been constantly followed slandered and even mind controlled through electronic weapons which are trying to lure me into a massive setup of some sort.”

The preliminary hearing is set to continue Thursday morning, when the judge will rule whether prosecutors have presented enough evidence to put Groft on trial.

Follow @hillelaron