When a 19-year-old Hickory woman returned to her car after working her shift at the Valley Hills Mall, she was greeted by a rude surprise.
Ten pieces of bologna had been left on her Nissan Sentra, Monday night.
Why?
According to the Police report, "Bologna is known to take the paint off a vehicle."
In addition to lunchmeat, her car was covered in scratches and gouges that looked like a fork-wielding vandal had made them.
"Opps" had been scratched into the car's right rear quarter panel. The vandal may have misspelled "oops."
The words "toilet paper" were scratched into the rear bumper.
The Internet is awash with speculation as to the efficacy of bologna as a car paint remover.
The U.S. Department of Energy's website says slapping some bologna on a car is not going to do much damage to the finish.
eHow says the idea that leaving bologna on a car overnight will leave bare metal circles behind when it is peeled away is a myth. "There will be greasy marks on the car, but they can be washed off," according to the site.
Readers posting on the Snopes.com message boards are convinced bologna is a reliable vandalism tool citing its phosphoric acid content.
Food-grade phosphoric acid is used as a preservative in foods. It's also used as a rust remover in products industrial applications.
The Hickory Police Department is investigating the crime.
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