Police Nab Suspected Teen Vandal in Chinatown

Suspect Tied To $9,000 in Damage
by Ryan Vaillancourt
Published: [Los Angeles Downtown News] Tuesday, May 12, 2009 10:29 AM PDT

DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES - A 15-year-old Chinatown resident accused of repeatedly spraying graffiti on the Bernard Street pedestrian overpass, which crosses the Pasadena Freeway, was arrested on vandalism charges early this morning.

After a witness identified the teen, police served a search warrant at his residence, an apartment building on the 700 block of Lookout Drive, where they found stickers bearing a graffiti “tag” that had been sprayed on the bridge, LAPD Lt. Paul Vernon said.

The individual, who allegedly sprayed the monikers “213” and “Fosk,” is estimated to have caused about $9,000 in damage in Chinatown, Vernon said. The same tags were also seen on a dumpster outside the apartment complex on Lookout Drive.

“There was a person who saw him tagging the bridge who recognized him in the neighborhood and first told his mother and then later, because the mother did not have much of a response, mentioned it at a community meeting and we took it from there,” Vernon said.

The suspect has one prior arrest, for throwing rocks and bricks at passing cars, Vernon said. He will be released from police custody today and will face a judge in juvenile court.

Contact Ryan Vaillancourt at ryan@downtownnews.com

posted on 2009-05-13


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